Looking Back
by Black Knight 03
Summary: As adults, Miranda and Gordo look back on their relaionship and how they got to where they are. [MG]
1. First Encounter

Here's my latest creation. Ever since I did Moments, I'd wanted to do an M/G version of it. In this, Miranda and Gordo are looking back on their relationship and how it came to be and get to where it is. I tried to use as many of the M/G moments, or at least mention them somewhere, that were in the show. If anyone has a specific moment they'd like to see come up, let me know and I'll see what I can do. No guarantees though but I'll try. Also, if anyone notices any mistakes, please point them out to me so I can fix them. Thanks.

2/2/2006 – In some of the chapters, the separation between flashback and present some how got deleted. I've gone through and fixed the problem.

Disclaimer – Disney owns Lizzie McGuire.

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

Chapter 1 – First Encounter

Miranda was shifting through her attic, trying to organize the sea of boxes and other odds and ends that had been collected through the years. As she pulled another box to her, Miranda heard noises coming from about a foot away. Just as she looked over, a little girl with a mess of dark brown curls suddenly popped up from behind a group of boxes wearing a huge sunhat that was three sizes too big.

"Mommy! Look!" the little girl squealed with laughter as she fought to keep the hat from falling down over her eyes.

Miranda couldn't help but laugh at how cute her daughter looked. "Where did you find that?"

"In the box," she said and pointed to one of the boxes that surrounded her.

"Come here Sammy." Her four-year-old daughter Samantha walked over to her. Miranda adjusted the hat so it'd stop from falling over her eyes. "There you go," Miranda told her with a smile.

"Thanks Mommy," Samantha said and then walked back to the boxes she was searching through.

Miranda smiled as she watched her for a few minutes before going back to organize the box in front of her. A little while later, while she had organized one corner of the attic, Samantha had made a mess of the other.

"Sammy, I want you to help me clean up this mess," Miranda said as she walked over. As Miranda knelt down and grabbed one of the containers, Samantha started handing her stuff that she taken out to look at.

"What's this?" Samantha asked as she picked up a photo album. Taking the album, Miranda opened it to the first page. Samantha stood at her mom's side and looked at the pictures. The first picture was of two young children, a boy and a girl. "Who that?"

"Who is that?" Miranda corrected her and when Samantha rolled her eyes, Miranda snickered. "That's me and Daddy," she answered Samantha's question. "_We must've been four or five when this picture was taken."_ Samantha looked at her in disbelief and then back at the picture. "We were about your age when we first met," Miranda told her

"How you meet Daddy?" Samantha demanded more than asked. Miranda grinned at her and sitting down on the floor, Samantha sat down next to her and Miranda put the album down in front of them.

-----

Gordo sat alone on one of the swings, gently rocking back and forth. Normally, he'd be here playing with Lizzie but she was sick and stuck in bed for the past few days. Wanting him to get outside and get some fresh air, Mrs. Gordon brought him to park when she got home from work.

Mrs. Gordon sighed as she watched her son from a nearby bench. This was a large fear of her's that her son was getting too dependent on Lizzie and when she wasn't around, he became shy and quiet. Lizzie was usually the more outgoing one and often spoke for both of them.

As Gordo was rocking, a soccer ball rolled up to his feet. Looking up in surprise, he saw a young brunette girl jog up to him. "Can I have my ball?" she asked a little tentatively.

Kicking it back to her, the two stared at each other for a moment. The brunette turned to run off but then paused and cautiously looked at him over her shoulder, "You wanna play?" she asked as she rolled the ball underneath one of her feet and then kicked it back at him.

Gordo shrugged, "Ok," he said as he trapped the ball.

The girl arched her eyebrow at him and smirked, almost as if to challenge him and prove himself. After kicking the ball back to her, the girl took off with it and Gordo jumped from the swing and quickly chased after her.

They played keep away from each other for almost an hour. As the girl kicked the ball and it bounced off a tree trunk. Gordo and the girl ran after the ball with their heads down and in opposing directions. As they reached the ball at the same time, they collided hard and their heads smacked together.

Temporarily stunned, they both fell backwards onto their butts and looked at each other for a moment. Then slowly, the girl started snickering and Gordo couldn't help but start snickering too. As they rubbed their foreheads, they started laughing at themselves.

After a few minutes, the laughing died down and they sat across from each other rolling the ball back and forth between them. "What's your name?" Gordo asked, realizing he didn't know what it was.

"Miranda," the girl said as she blew her bangs out of her face. "What's yours?"

"David Gordon."

Miranda scrunched her face up a little, "I'm gonna call you Gordo."

"Why?"

She shrugged with a smug grin, "Cause I like it." Gordo looked at her like she was crazy and Miranda started laughing. Gordo rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Miranda!" a voice called from a few yards away.

The brunette looked up and seeing the source of the voice, smiled, "Hi Daddy!" she said as she waved to him.

"There you are," Mr. Sanchez said as he walked over. "And I see you've made a friend."

"That's Gordo," she said pointing at him.

"Gordo?"

"David." Gordo said.

"David!" Mrs. Gordon called.

"That's my mommy," Gordo said as he started to get up.

Mr. Sanchez smiled as Miranda got up too and after picking up her soccer ball, walked with Gordo towards where Mrs. Gordon was calling. When the two were a few yards ahead, he started to follow them across the park.

A few seconds later, Mrs. Gordon saw him walking towards her. She grinned as she saw the brunette walking next to him. "Who's your friend David?"

"He's Gordo," Miranda said before Gordo could say anything.

Gordo, again, looked over at her like she was crazy. "She's Miranda," he said looking back at his mom and pointing at her.

"Miranda Sanchez," Mr. Sanchez said walking up behind them, "I'm her father, Edward."

"Roberta Gordon," Mrs. Gordon said as she stood up and shook hands with him, "You just moved into the house on the corner of Elm and Clark right?"

"Yea. We just moved in yesterday."

"We live a few house down on Clark and the McGuires, trust me you'll meet them soon, live across the street on Elm."

"We were worried Miranda would have a hard time finding friends. She can be a handful at times." Just as Mr. Sanchez said that, they saw Miranda push Gordo a little and Gordo quickly push her back. "I see Miranda's finally found someone who'll stand up to her," he said with a small smile.

"Daddy," Miranda said, "Can Gordo come over?"

Mr. Sanchez looked at her daughter and then gave Mrs. Gordon a questioning glance. Mrs. Gordon nodded. "Sure and if its alright with his mom, he can stay for dinner."

Two pairs of eyes looked up at Mrs. Gordon. She couldn't help but smile at the two little kids, "Yea. You can have dinner. I'll come pick you up afterwards."

-----

"And your father hasn't left me alone since," Miranda teased as she closed the photo album and Samantha giggled.

"I think it was the other way around," a male voice said sarcastically from the attic doorway.

Miranda looked up and grinned at her husband. "Please. From the second you first met me, you've been captivated by my beauty."

Gordo snorted, "Then why did you keep trying to beat me up?" Samantha giggled again and Gordo looked over at her, "When we were young, your mother was constantly torturing me."

"Had to keep you in line somehow," Miranda deadpanned. "Come on, let's pick up the rest of this stuff and I'll tell you another story."

Gordo started to help them pick up the mess, "And then I'll tell you the truth," he said to Samantha.

Miranda glared at him and smirked, "How about we tell her about your bowling adventures."

Gordo glared back, "Or how about how you almost became Mrs. Matt McGuire," he shot back with wry grin. As they continued picking up, Samantha watched and listened to her parents, good naturally, banter back and forth. It was something she had learned early on about her parents; they bickered a lot but when it came down to it, even at such a young age, she knew they were absolutely and completely in love with each other.

Finishing, Miranda grabbed the album and Samantha hoped up onto Gordo's back and they went downstairs for another story.


	2. Misadventures In Bowling

Dan T –While she may not appear in all of them, Lizzie will be talked about, especially when I get to Lizzie and Gordo dating. As for the Gordo nickname, from the show, I don't think Miranda at thirteen or fourteen knows/knew a lot of Spanish, maybe enough to get by. So I don't think a four-year-old Miranda would even know more than a few words and maybe not even know exactly what all those words meant. Basically, at that time, she doesn't realize that gordo means fat. She just thinks it's a cool way to shorten his name. Also, that's why I had Mr. Sanchez question her about what she said his name was.

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

Chapter 2 – Misadventures In Bowling

Sitting in the living room, Samantha watched in amusement as her parents were still going back and forth.

"I wanna hear the bowling story!" Samantha said interrupting them. Miranda smirked at Gordo and he rolled his eyes.

"Fine," Gordo muttered.

Sitting down next to her, Miranda started the story, "The first time your father ever went bowling, his fingers swelled up and the ball got stuck to his hand. He had to go to the hospital to have it sawed off." She paused as Samantha giggled at her father. Gordo, who was sitting next to her on the other side of the couch, took one of the pillows and gently plopped it on top of her head. This just caused her to giggle harder.

"So a few years later, you know our friend Ethan?" Miranda paused, so Samantha could nod. "He invited me, your father, and your Aunt Lizzie to go bowling with him. Your father was so freaked out about it."

Gordo interrupted her, "I was not freaked out. I just didn't want to have another bowling ball removed from my hand. Or to watch you two drool over Ethan."

"Whatever," Miranda said as she smirked at him. "Anyway, since your father is so uptight, I knew all he had to do was relax to have a good time. So I became his life coach and taught him how to relax."

"How?" Samantha asked curiously.

"I made him realize he doesn't have to be perfect in everything. That he can mess up every once in awhile." Looking at him, she smirked, "And when he messes up, he messes up big." she teased.

"Excuse me?" Gordo asked sarcastically.

Miranda's smirk got wider, "Correct me if I'm wrong but aren't you the one who blew up a brain?"

Samantha's head snapped around and she looked up at her father in awe, "You blew up a brain?"

Gordo snickered, "It wasn't a real brain. It was a science project. I built a model of the brain. I overheated it and it blew up in my face." Samantha laughed at the image of the brain exploding all over him.

"Back to the point," Miranda said. "I taught Gordo a way to relax and not freak out."

"Bowling is good, bowling is fun, bowling will not make my fingers swell," Gordo recited, remembering the phrase Miranda used to help him relax.

Snickering, Miranda reached over and patted his head. "Good boy."

He grinned back at her, "Where's my cookie?"

-----

Mr. McGuire sat at the scorer's table totaling everyone's scores. "I have a 198, Lizzie has a 110, Miranda has 120, and Gordo 73."

"Alright!" Gordo celebrated.

Miranda smiled and high fived him, "Great job!" Lizzie smirked at her friends and laughed softly as she shook her head at their goofiness.

"Dude, you lost." Ethan said looking at Gordo confused.

"You're right. Gordo got killed," Miranda said sarcastically. "He went down in flames."

"I got blown out of the water," Gordo added and the two started laughing. Ethan shook his head and walked back to his lane.

"We playing another game?" Lizzie asked.

"Sounds good," Miranda said, "You up for it Gutter King?" Miranda teased.

"I think I can handle a few more gutter balls," Gordo shot back sarcastically. The two looked at each other and smirked. "Who's up first?" he asked Mr. McGuire.

"Well, if we reverse the order," he paused for a moment as he looked at the score sheet, "You're up Gordo."

After picking up his ball, he walked up to the line. Miranda walked up behind him, "Ready?"

"Yup." Taking a deep breath, Gordo drew back and launched the ball down the lane. Taking a few steps back, he watched the ball slowly wavering back and forth down the lane. As the ball struck the pins, Gordo watched in awe as all of the pins slowly fell down.

"You got a strike," Miranda said in disbelief. Then letting out an excited shriek, wrapped Gordo in a bear hug from behind.

Gordo stared down the lane in disbelief. "Alright!" he celebrated after the surprise wore off. Spinning around, he hugged Miranda. "I got a strike!"

"Alright Gordo!" Lizzie said as she high fived Gordo.

A little while later, after Mr. McGuire drove them back to McGuires and they said goodnight to Lizzie, Gordo was walking Miranda home. "So how does it feel to not be incredibly horrible at bowling anymore?" Miranda teased.

Lifting his arm and flexing his right hand in front of them, "Nice, plus no trip to the emergency room." They both snickered. "I actually had fun, even though you two spent most of the night drooling over Ethan."

Miranda playfully shoved him, "I was not drooling," she then smirked, "I was just admiring," she said sarcastically. When Gordo rolled his eyes, Miranda elbowed him in the ribs.

"Just remember that next time I look at Kate."

Looking at him with a smirk and arched eyebrow, "We just look, you stare open mouthed, panting like a dog," she joked.

Gordo raised his hand, pretending he was going backhand her. Miranda glared at him with a smirk and an arm cocked back in a fist. Laughing at each other, they reached the Sanchez driveway.

"Thanks for making me go bowling," Gordo told her.

"You're welcome," Miranda said with a smirk. "I told you'd have fun. You should listen to me more often."

"I wouldn't go that far," he said dryly.

"Sure, make fun of your life coach," she said laughing softly.

Gordo smirked, "Why stop now?"

"I gotta get inside, talk to ya later?" Miranda asked the rhetorical question as she started to walk up the driveway.

"Of course," Gordo said. "Miranda." She stopped and looked at him. Walking over to her, "Thanks," Gordo said and then hugged her.

"Anytime," Miranda said hugging him back. "Night," she said as she started back up the driveway.

"Night." Gordo said as he started towards his own house.

-----

"See, I taught Daddy how to bowl," Miranda told Samantha and Gordo rolled his eyes.

Samantha looked at her father and gave him a smirk, almost identical to Miranda's. She then stood up on the couch and playfully patted his head, "Good boy."

Miranda started laughing and Gordo looked at his daughter as she started laughing too. Quickly grabbing her, he pulled her into his lap and started tickling her. Samantha started hiccupping, she was laughing so hard, as she tried to wiggle free of her father's grasp.

Miranda smiled as she watched them. Checking her watch, "I gotta go finish dinner," she said standing up.

Gasping for breath, Samantha looked at her, "I want another story."

Smiling, "Ok. Let me finish dinner and I'll tell you another story."

"No. I'll tell her another story and it'll be the truth this time," Gordo said. Miranda pretended to give him a wounded look and Gordo smirked at her.

"How about you just get Samantha ready for dinner," Miranda shot back.

Rolling his eyes, "Come on Sammy," he said scooping up his daughter. "We gotta give your mom some time to create her next story."

As they passed her, Miranda swatted his butt playfully and Gordo grinned at her over his shoulder as they walked out of the room.


	3. Cooking With Miranda And Gordo

A/N – "_Thoughts"_, Samantha refers to her Sanchez grandparents as Abuela and Abuelo and her Gordon grandparents as Grandma and Grandpa.

Chapter 3 – Cooking With Miranda And Gordo

Miranda was finishing preparing dinner, tamales and rice, when Gordo and Samantha came into the kitchen from the bathroom. As Gordo helped Samantha set the table, he chuckled under his breath.

"What's so funny?" Miranda asked.

"The trip down memory lane just reminded me of the first time I tried to make tamales."

Miranda thought about it for a moment and the memory came back. Laughing softly, she grinned at him, "I remember that. Seventh-grade social studies project. Lizzie was sick the day we picked partners, she got stuck with Kate and we partnered to do Mexico."

"If I remember correctly, I did all the research."

"I told you then and I'll tell you now, if we want to research Mexico, we talk to my parents," Miranda said sarcastically.

"Abuelos?" Samantha asked, interrupting them.

Putting the tamales and rice on the hot plates on the table, Miranda glanced at her, "Yes. Your abuelos are from Mexico. Abuelo is from Cataviña and he moved to Los Angeles when he was ten. Abuela is from Guaymas and moved to Los Angeles when she was eighteen," she told her.

Samantha looked over at her father as he sat down, "What about Grandma and Grandpa?"

Gordo chuckled softly, "They're from California, like you. Grandpa grew up in Bakersfield and Grandma grew up in Hill Ridge."

Miranda returned her attention back to Gordo and the conversation they were originally having, "I did my share of the research. Just because I didn't do it like the first day we got the assignment like you, doesn't mean I didn't do it." As Miranda started to serve Samantha, "And when we actually made the tamales, you made a mess of the kitchen."

"I did not," Gordo said like a little boy.

As Miranda and Gordo served themselves, "The way you handled a knife, I thought you were going to slice a finger off," Miranda joked.

"So? Did I? No. Besides, you enjoyed teaching me how to cook?" he said to her across the table with a grin. Many times during college when they had been home on break and Miranda would teach Gordo how to cook some simple dishes. Slowly over time, she taught him how do some more complicated stuff.

Miranda smiled as she remembered teaching him, especially when they're lessons evolved into something more. Trying to fight back the blush creeping onto her cheeks. "Someone had to set you straight. I have no intentions of cooking every night for your lazy butt."

-----

Hanging up her phone after talking to Lizzie, she continued to jump on her bed as she watched Gordo sitting at her desk, researching their social studies project. Dropping onto her butt and bouncing off of the bed, landing on her feet, she walked up behind him. "Why are you putting so much effort into this?"

Gordo glanced at her, "Cause I want an A."

Miranda rolled her eyes, "Gordo, all we gotta do is talk to my mom when she's helping us make the tamales."

"I don't want to do the bare minimum. That's the difference between getting Bs and As."

Glaring at him, "There's also a difference between working smart and working hard."

Turning around in his seat, he looked at her with a grin. "Wanna know something scary?"

Looking at him confused, "What?" she asked as she jumped off the bed and landed on the floor.

"You almost sounded like me just then," he told her.

Snickering, "Oh no. We don't want that," she teased. "Come on take a break. You've been hunched over there for like two hours," Miranda said as she pulled a reluctant Gordo out of his seat. Jumping back onto her bed, she started to bounce again, "Come on," she urged with an evil grin.

"Miranda, what are we five?"

"You act like it sometimes. Throwing your little tantrums," she said sarcastically, goading him into doing what she wanted.

Gordo glared at her and did a standing jump onto the bed. Glaring at each other and grinning, they both started jumping. Miranda grinned as she saw a smile start tugging at Gordo's mouth.

"Miranda! Gordo!" a voice shouted from the doorway.

Scarring them, they both lost their footing and fell on top of each other in a heap on top of the bed. When her head cleared, Miranda looked at the doorway and saw her mother glaring at them. "Hi Mom."

Looking at them for a moment, a little disappoint and a little amused at the same time, "I'll meet you two downstairs. I have the stuff for the tamales," Mrs. Sanchez said and then left to go to the kitchen.

Untangling themselves, Gordo looked over at her. "You are such a bad influence on me."

Miranda looked back at him with a smirk and slapped his shoulder. "I am not a bad influence. I teach you how to live and not be such a stick in the mud."

A few minutes later, they were standing in the kitchen with Miranda's mom, cooking the tamales they would need for their project.

"How much more do we have to do for our paper?" Miranda asked as they were peeling and slicing some onions.

"All we really got do is write it," Gordo told her without looking up.

"Ok." Miranda paused for a moment and watched Gordo cutting. "Gordo, stop, you're gonna slice your hand open." She reached over and took the onion and knife out of his hand, "Like this," she put it on the cutting board and expertly using the knife, cut it in half and sliced it up.

Grabbing the other half, she put it on the cutting board. Handing the knife back to him, "Now you," she ordered.

For the next few hours, Mrs. Sanchez taught them how to cook tamales. After finishing and cleaning up the mess they both had made while cooking, they were back upstairs in her room, typing up their report.

As Gordo typed, Miranda sat on her bed watching and interjecting here and there.

"Considering you almost lost like three fingers, I think the tamales came out pretty good," Miranda said, a slight sarcastic tone to her words.

Gordo glanced over his shoulder and glared at her. "You wanna type this?" he said sarcastically.

Miranda grinned, "Nah. You're doing just fine," she shot back

Grumbling under his breath, he turned back to the computer. Getting up, she walked over to him and resting her arms on his shoulder and chin on top of his head, she read what was on the screen.

"You mind?"

Miranda smirked, "No, not really." Hearing him snicker under his breath, she giggled softly. "We make a pretty good team," she said softly as she read the end of the report.

"Yea we do."

-----

"I'll admit you're the better cook. I mean you are the expert in flambé," Gordo teased.

Miranda glared across the table at him. "You start one small fire and you're branded for life."

Snickering, "I'm still trying to figure out how you set fire to grilled cheese."

Samantha laughed, "You set fire to grilled cheese?"

Rolling her eyes, "Once, I did it once. Can we talk about something else?"

"Mommy," Samantha said, "Will you teach me to cook?"

Miranda smiled at her, "Maybe when you're a little older." Seeing the dejected look on her daughter's face, pulled at her heart. "How about I teach you how to bake instead?"

Samantha's face lit up, "When?"

"How about next weekend," Miranda said and she nodded excitedly. Looking across the table, she saw Gordo grinning at her and she grinned back at him.


	4. Birthday Kiss

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

Chapter 4 – Birthday Kiss

Miranda lay on top of their bed starring at a wedding photo that sat on top of her dresser with a smile. "_Its been eight years,"_ she thought as she toyed with her wedding band. Quickly doing some math in her head, her smile widened, "_I can't believe we've been together for thirteen years."_

Telling Samantha those stories made Miranda keep thinking about their past. In fact, one memory kept coming back to her, their first kiss. It wasn't just the first kiss they shared but it was also her first kiss ever. "_I wonder if he remembers? He prolly thinks our first kiss was when we got together."_

Hearing the door open, Miranda looked over and watched Gordo walk into the bedroom. "Sammy give you any trouble?"

Gordo had been tucking Samantha into bed and reading her story before she fell asleep. "Nah. I barely finished the story before she was out. She's gonna want another story tomorrow, she got a kick out of hearing them."

"I'll think of something," Miranda said as she watched Gordo change for bed.

"I'm sure you will," he said sarcastically. He then smirked, "Sammy wants to hear about you and Uncle Matt," Gordo said laughing as he leaned against the doorframe that lead into their bathroom. Miranda glared at him and chucked a pillow at him. Still laughing, he caught it easily. "We could always tell her about how you dressed up like a guy and not only crashed my date with Brooke, but also followed me into the bathroom," he said with a grin.

Miranda groaned, "You saw that?"

"It was kinda hard to miss. At first I wasn't sure it was you but after I saw what you were wearing when you and Lizzie crashed into the waiter and got spaghetti dumped all over you," he said laughing softly at the memory, "I recognized you from the bathroom. It wasn't one of your finer moments."

Tossing the pillow back at her, just as she caught it, Gordo jumped onto the bed and rolled on top of her, lightly pinning her to the bed.

Miranda looked up at him and smiled as she saw the wolfish grin on his face. "And what exactly are you planning on doing?" she asked sarcastically.

Gordo comically waggled his eyebrows at her. "I was thinking maybe we could play a little before going to sleep." he said before leaning down to give her a deep kiss.

As she released his lips, "If you can answer my question, I'll play with you," she told him with a sarcastic smirk.

Rolling off and laying next to her, he ran his fingertips across her stomach. "What's the question?"

"When did we first kiss?" Miranda asked him with a smug grin and trying to ignore the electricity that flowed as his fingertips skimmed across her skin. "_He's gonna say Halloween senior year."_

Smiling, he laughed softly under his breath. "_She's trying to set me up."_ Pausing a moment for dramatic effect, "Your thirteenth birthday," he said softly and watched in amusement as her face changed from smug to a mix of surprise and delight that he remembered.

-----

It was Miranda's thirteenth birthday and she, with Lizzie and Gordo, were watching horror movies in the Sanchez living room and pigging out on junk food. Lizzie and Miranda loved horror movies, they got a rush out of getting scared and then after watching the movie a couple times, it was fun to make fun of it.

As the current movie was reaching the end, Miranda and Lizzie were intently watching it. Lizzie was sitting in an armchair and Miranda and Gordo were sprawled out on different ends of the couch.

As the movies hero supposedly killed the movie's killer, the music cranked and the sound of the hero's gun firing was incredibly loud. Both Lizzie and Miranda shouted, startled. Lizzie fell out of her chair and Miranda, on reflex, reached out and tightly grabbed Gordo's wrist.

Looking at her in surprise, Gordo glanced down at his wrist and then back at her face. Miranda quickly let go and looked away, embarrassed. She was supposed to be tough, not let anything scare her, and even when it did, she never acted like that before.

Grabbing another slice of pizza, she quickly took a large bite, "_Can't talk with my mouth full."_

Gordo gave her a confused look before turning his attention back to the movie.

As the current movie ended, Lizzie switched DVDs and Gordo went to get another soda. Miranda played with her crust, absentmindedly starring at the television, as her mind wouldn't let go of what just happened. "_It was nothing. I just got startled, I jumped and Gordo was sitting next to me. Yea, that's what it was. Just a stupid reaction,"_ her brain rationalized. Feeling comfortable with that, she took a bite of the crust.

As Gordo walked back into the living room, he looked at her for a moment and Miranda felt her stomach tighten. As Lizzie started the next movie, Miranda slouched against the couch, trying to push aside the strange feeling. Ever since his relationship with Brooke, Miranda had found herself looking at Gordo differently. He was still her best friend but it was like now she was seeing him as a boy too and it brought a lot of conflicting emotions.

Trying to block his presence out, she focused on the movie. Unfortunately, it failed. She spent more time trying to do it, than actually doing it.

After the movie ended, Lizzie had to go home and Gordo stayed to help Miranda clean up a little.

"Are you alright?" Gordo asked her as they were picking up their garbage from the living room.

Miranda fumbled the soda can she had just picked up. "I'm fine."

Chuckling to himself, he grabbed an empty bag of chips and walked towards the garbage in the kitchen. Grabbing the soda can she dropped and then the remaining ones, she followed Gordo into the kitchen.

"I've just been a little distracted," Miranda said as she dumped the cans into a recycle bin.

"With what?"

Sighing, "Me and Lizzie were talking about guys." When Gordo snickered, Miranda playfully poked up in the ribs. "Anyway, we got to talking about what its like to, uh," she paused getting a little embarrassed, one of the downfalls of having a boy as a best friend.

"What?" he asked as he turned to face her, curious as to why she stopped.

"Uh, we were talking about what its like to," Miranda paused again and took a deep breath, "kiss a guy."

Gordo looked at her for a moment, "Oh."

Really embarrassed now, Miranda quickly walked into the living room. Gordo slowly followed her, "What about it were you guys talking about?"

"First kisses," Miranda mumbled as she grabbed the empty pizza box.

She smirked to herself as she figured out a way to turn the table, a way to embarrass him. "Lizzie told me, when she was six, she chased you around the house and trapped you in her closet," she said with a smirk, and then looked over at him. Snickering softly, she watched Gordo trying to hide the blush creeping on his face. "She said you were a good kisser," she teased and laughed softly as Gordo grabbed the remaining trash and quickly walked into the kitchen.

"What about you?" Gordo shot back over his shoulder. "What was your first kiss?" Miranda's smile vanished and she quietly followed him into the kitchen and threw out the empty box. "Miranda?" he asked curiously as to her sudden shift in emotion.

"I've never really had a first kiss," she mumbled. She shrugged, "I was always the tomboy and now, the wild one. I guess nobody wants to kiss me."

Gordo snorted and Miranda looked at him strangely. "Trust me, guys want to kiss you. In fact, I know of one in particular."

"You say his name, I swear I'll knock you out," she warned, knowing who he was talking about.

Gordo chuckled, "Ok, ok. There are other guys who are interested in you," he told her as he got ready to go home.

"But I'm tired of waiting," she joked as she walked Gordo to the door.

Opening the door, Gordo paused for a moment. "Miranda." When she looked at him, Gordo quickly leaned in and gave her a small kiss on the lips. Pulling back, he grinned at her flustered expression. "Now you have a story too."

Finding her voice, "What? My best friend felt sorry that I've never had a first kiss before, so he kissed me."

"No," he said with a grin, "That on your birthday, when you officially became a teenager no less, your incredibly cute best friend gave you your first kiss not because he felt sorry for you but because he wanted to know what it'd be like to kiss you."

"You're a pain in the ass, you know that."

He just grinned and nodded. "I'll talk to you later. Bye."

Miranda leaned against the doorframe, and shook her head, "Bye." As she watched him walk across the front yard, a small smile spread across her face. Even though it did feel a little strange kissing him, it wasn't as weird as she thought it'd be kissing her best friend. In fact, now, she could see why Brooke would want to kiss him.

-----

"Do you think if you hadn't gone away for the summer, something would've happened between us?" Gordo asked her curiously. Miranda and Lizzie had gone away to summer camp for a few weeks that summer and Gordo went with his parents to Europe in mid-July.

Miranda smirked, "Maybe. But in hindsight, I like how things played out. You had to go through your Lizzie phase anyway and if we got together, I would've just been road kill."

Gordo grinned playfully at her, "So you liked the kiss," he teased.

Miranda rolled onto her side so she was facing him, "Well I didn't have anything to compare it to," she shot back with a grin.

Grabbing her around the waist, he pulled her to him. "You're lucky I love you."

"Oh please, like anyone else could stand you." Pushing his chest, she rolled them so she was now on top. Straddling his hips, "So you were mine and Lizzie's first kiss. If you tell me you were Kate's, I will have to hurt you."

Laughing softly, "No. I never kissed Kate," he then quickly added, "One of my greatest disappointments." Miranda then slapped his side and he grinned up at her. "Play time?" he asked like a little boy, with a smirk.

Miranda rolled her eyes and then leaned down and kissed him. Barely pulling back from his lips, "How can I resist?" she whispered softly before kissing him again.


	5. Valentine's Day Sucks

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

Chapter 5 – Valentine's Day Sucks

It was early morning and while they usually slept in on Sundays, this morning Miranda was laying on her side watching Gordo sleep. Gently stroking his hair, she smiled as she looked down at him.

Gordo's eyes slowly opened and he grinned as he found himself looking back into her dark brown eyes. Reaching up, he gently trailed his fingertips across her cheek. "Sammy up yet?" he asked softly.

Miranda shook her head no. "It's about seven thirty, on a normal morning she'd be up around eight but I tired her out yesterday helping me clean the attic, so she'll prolly be out for awhile." Sliding over him and laying on top of him, she folded her arms across his chest and rested her chin on them as she looked up at him.

Pulling the blankets up, so they were right below her shoulders, Gordo looked back at her and smiled as she had this glazed look over her eyes as she was daydreaming. "What are you thinking about?"

Miranda blinked and then grinned at him, "I was just thinking about eighth grade. Well, actually something that happened in eighth grade."

"What? Being Matt's rebound girl?" he teased. Even thought it happened a long time ago, Gordo still got a lot of mileage out of it and he loved teasing her about it.

"Will you let that go?" she told him as she slapped him in the ribs.

Gordo laughed, "I can't help it, it's funny. I especially loved the balloons."

Miranda looked at him and let an evil smile spread across her face. "Well then, how about you Romeo. I believe you spent most of eighth grade drooling over Lizzie."

"I did not spend the entire year drooling over her," he shot back as he rolled his eyes.

"True," she said, "Just after Valentine's Day."

Gordo slipped his arms around Miranda and picking his head up a little, "If I remember correctly, you were my Valentine," he reminded her with a grin and laughed a little as her cheeks took on a light reddish tint.

-----

It was a few days before Valentine's Day and Gordo was walking down the street. His mind was spinning over Lizzie and her new boyfriend, seeing them kiss, and the fact that he felt jealous about it. He had been bouncing off the walls in his room and decided to go get some air, which was why he was walking.

As he walked, he happened to look up at the right time to see Miranda storming down the street in the opposite direction on the other side of the street.

"Miranda!" he called out but either she didn't hear him or was ignoring him. Looking both ways, he quickly jogged across the street.

"Miranda," he called again but she continued walking. Speeding up, Gordo reached out and grabbing Miranda's arm, he stopped her and spun her around. "Miranda, I've been," he stopped mid-sentence as he noticed her expression and that her eyes were a little red. "Rand?"

Roughly jerking her arm out of his grasp, she quickly spun back around and started to walk away. Gordo quickly blocked her path, "Miranda."

Taking a shuttering breath, "I don't wanna talk about it," she said through clenched teeth as she glared at him.

"Too bad," Gordo said as he glared back.

Gordo watched as a few tears started to slip from Miranda's eyes. Angrily, she brushed them away as she tried very hard to keep herself together. The last thing she wanted to do was fall apart in front of him. Trying to walk around him, Miranda was stopped again by Gordo as he wrapped an arm around her waist. Then it was like a switch was flipped and Miranda couldn't hold it back anymore. As the tears started flowing, Miranda tried her best to quickly wipe them away but was failing miserably.

Watching her, Gordo started to get nervous and a little scared. Even being around two girls most of the time, emotions still made him nervous. On top of that, he had never seen Miranda like this and not knowing what caused it, scared him. He did the only thing he could think of, he pulled her to him and hugged her. Feeling her practical shaking against him, Gordo just held her tighter. Miranda, beyond really caring at the moment, buried her face into the crook of Gordo's neck and shoulder.

A few minutes later, they had walked to the Sanchez's and Miranda was sitting on the edge of her bed with Gordo sitting on her desk chair in front of her. "Rand, what happened?"

Sighing, Miranda used the back of her hand to wipe her eyes. "I got into a fight with Liz." Gordo arched an eyebrow and a confused expression appeared on his face.

As if reading his mind, Miranda explained, "I got tired of the Ronnie crap. We were supposed to go to the mall but she had to call him before we left. They talked for like two hours and then when they were done, they wouldn't hang up. They kept saying, no, you hang up. I got annoyed and I hung up for her. She started bitching and then told me I was only jealous 'cause I didn't have anyone like her."

Gordo closed his eyes and silently cursed out his other friend. "Miranda," he said softly, "What Lizzie said was stupid and she has been getting beyond annoying with this Ronnie crap. But you also know, she didn't mean it and prolly feels horrible right now for hurting you."

When Miranda glared at him, Gordo reached out and grabbed her hand. "Tell me that it's just Lizzie that has you this upset and its not also this Valentine's crap and everyone seeming like there in some sort of couple."

Looking down, "I hate Valentine's Day."

Gordo smirked and getting up from the chair, sat down next to her on the bed. After he wrapped an arm around her, Miranda rested her head on his shoulder and Gordo gently leaned his head against her's. "Me too."

A few days later, it was the night of the school's Valentine's Day dance. Lizzie had been apologizing for the past few days, even before Ronnie broke up with her. Gordo was right; she did feel horrible about hurting her best friend.

Miranda was finishing getting ready, putting on a few jelly bracelets, someone knocked on her bedroom door. Without looking up, "Come in."

"Hey," Gordo said as he walked in, holding something behind his back.

Miranda turned around and grinned at him, "Hey. What's behind your back?"

"A gift."

"For your future girlfriend Lizzie?" Miranda teased. At first, when she realized Gordo was jealous, it kinda made her uneasy. She wasn't sure why, she just figured it was cause they were her best friends. Now, she was slowly getting use to it and thought it was kinda of cute and funny that Gordo was drooling over Lizzie. Though there was a small jealous feeling buried deep down, wondering why he couldn't be interested in her.

"No," he said quickly. "Actually it's for you." Gordo told her with a smirk.

Miranda looked at him with an arched eyebrow, "Oh?" Gordo pulled his hand out from behind him and in his hand was a single yellow rose. Miranda's eyes went wide in surprise and her mouth slowly drew into a smile.

"Happy Valentine's Day," he said softly as he gave her the flower.

"Thanks Gordo," Miranda said, not really sure what else to say.

Gordo looked down at his shoes embarrassed, "I thought after everything that's happened, you deserved something nice. Yellow means friendship," he mumbled as he wringed his hands together.

Looking at him, Miranda slowly walked over to him. "Thanks," she said softly and then did something she thought she'd never do. She leaned in and kissed Gordo's cheek.

Miranda snickered at the surprised and embarrassed looks that crossed across Gordo's face. Looking at each other for a second, both were unsure what to say or do next. Miranda broke the silence, "Come on," she said, "We gotta go get Lizzie." The two left her bedroom and headed downstairs.

-----

Miranda smiled at him, "Who knew you could be so sweet," she said sarcastically before sliding up and kissing him. "I was a little jealous when I saw you do all those romantic gestures for Lizzie."

"Well you don't have to be jealous anymore," he said softly. Gordo slowly ran a hand down her back, "How much time do you think we have?" he asked suggestively. Then almost as if on cue, a knock on their bedroom door interrupted them. Looking at each other, they laughed softly.

"Mommy, I'm hungry," Samantha's voice said through the door.

"Ok honey. I'll meet you downstairs in two minutes," Miranda called back.

"Ok." They then heard Samantha's footsteps walking away.

Slowly getting off her husband and reluctantly out of the bed. As she was putting her pajamas back on, "You looked so cute, all flustered and embarrassed." she said with a grin.

"Well your face was priceless when you saw the flower," he shot back.

Finishing, Miranda put on her slippers and unlocked their bedroom door, "You coming downstairs?"

"In a minute," Gordo said as he stretched out on the bed.

Miranda smirked at him, "You just want the bed all to yourself."

"Not necessarily," he said back to her with lopsided grin.

Rolling her eyes, "I'll see you downstairs. One of us as to take care of our daughter," Miranda said with a grin before opening the door and heading down to the kitchen.

Gordo lay on his back and folding his arms behind his head, a large smile spread across his face as he relaxed in the large, empty bed.


	6. Mexico

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

Chapter 6 – Mexico

Gordo slowly walked into the kitchen and grinned as he saw Samantha sitting at the kitchen table, stuffing her mouth full of pancakes. Playfully, ruffling her hair, he saw Miranda standing at the counter with her back to him. She had a section of the paper laid out on the counter and as she read it, she sipped from her coffee mug.

Walking over, Gordo wrapped his arms around her and pressed up against her back. As he kissed her cheek, Miranda smiled as she leaned back against him. "Finally got your sorry butt out of bed."

"I needed sometime to think," he said as he let go and grabbed himself his own cup of coffee.

Miranda glanced at him, curious. "About what?"

"Your anniversary gift," Gordo told her with a grin as he took a drink of his coffee.

"Whatya gonna get me?" she asked like a little girl.

Gordo chuckled softly, "Now, if I told you, it wouldn't be much of surprise."

She glared at him. Miranda hated surprises. Not so much the surprises themselves but the not knowing what it was, bugged her. Slowly a grin spread across her face; putting down her coffee cup, she walked over to him. "Gordo," she said softly. Loosely threading her arms around his waist, Miranda leaned in and very gently brushed her lips against his. "Tell me," she whispered and grinned as she saw Gordo trying to fight it. Miranda leaned in and kissed him again, pulling back, she pouted at him and gave him this sad puppy dog look. She then started to gently trail kisses from his lips, across his cheek, finally to his earlobe. "Tell me," she whispered again and started to gently nibble on his earlobe.

"Fine," Gordo groaned, defeated. As Miranda pulled back so she could look him in the eyes again, Gordo glared at her and she just giggled back at him with a wide grin. "You know how you've always said you wanted to go back to Mexico."

Miranda's grin was suddenly replaced with a look of complete surprise. "You didn't?"

"You and your mom have been hinting at wanting to go back to visit your grandparents, so you father and I put together a little trip for this summer. We spend two weeks in July with your grandparents in Guaymas," Gordo told her with a grin.

Miranda gave him a lingering kiss. "I love you," she told him with a huge grin.

"I know," he answered sarcastically with a small grin, "and you're welcome. I know how much you've wanted to go back and I think your grandparents should meet their great granddaughter."

"It sucked missing Rome but looking back, it was nice seeing my grandparents. They loved smothering me and Angela." Miranda glanced back at Sammy who was finishing her orange juice, "They'll love Sammy," she then turned her attention back to Gordo, "and getting to better know their new grandson-in law."

The only time Gordo had met them was their wedding and that had only been for few days. Gordo snickered, "Is there even such a thing?" Miranda just smirked and shrugged.

-----

Miranda sat on a small bench in the far corner of her abuelos backyard, just starring out at the rest of the yard. She, along with the rest of her family, were spending the month of June visiting her family in Guaymas, Mexico. While at first she had been a little pissed about it, but actually being here, it was pretty nice. Even if she barely spoke the language. "_That's one thing I have to do when I get home. Drop French and start taking Spanish."_

The only down side was she missed her friends and she was a little irked that she was going to miss the trip to Rome.

As she sat there, she kept thinking about Gordo. For the past few months, she had been feeling different around him. It was a weird feeling, one she really couldn't figure out or really wanted to. When she figured out Gordo had a crush on Lizzie, she started really pushing him to tell her. She figured if he was with Lizzie, somehow, the weird feeling would go away.

She was wrong.

The harder she tried to push Lizzie and Gordo together, the stronger her feelings got and the more annoyed Miranda got. The last thing she wanted to do was fall for her best friend, who obviously had a huge crush on their other best friend. But ever since seventh grade, they had been getting closer. They had gone from being casual friends because of Lizzie to best friends themselves, outside of Lizzie.

Sighing softly, she ran a hand through her long black hair and stretched her legs out in front of her. "_I can not have a crush on Gordo. He's like a brother to me, plus he's hopelessly in love with Lizzie."_

Miranda grumbled under her breath, "_Stupid Gordo."_

"_I am not jealous. Why should I be jealous?"_ It was like her own thoughts were taunting her. Aggravated, Miranda stood up and headed for the house. While she had originally come outside to find some quiet, her brain had made sure she didn't.

Walking inside, she found her abuela sitting at the kitchen table slicing some peppers. "What are you doing up so early?" Abuela Santiago asked in heavily accented English.

Miranda shrugged, "Woke up early and went outside to think about some stuff," she said as she took a bite out of a muffin.

"You've seemed preoccupied ever since you arrived. You want to talk about it?"

"Not really. It's complicated."

Abuela Santiago smirked as she continued slicing the peppers, "It usually is when you're in love. Its that Gordo boy you're constantly talking about, isn't it?" she said and put the knife down.

Miranda nearly choked on a mouthful of muffin. "Wh…What?" Forcing herself to swallow and after coughing for a moment, "I am not in love with Gordo," she said defensively.

Abuela Santiago smirk grew as she knew she hit a nerve. If her granddaughter wasn't, she wouldn't have reacted so strongly. "Maybe not love yet but you do have strong feelings for him."

"He…He's my best friend, of course I have strong feelings for him. He's a big part of my life," Miranda answered quickly. "It doesn't mean I like him as anything else."

Abuela Santiago just slowly nodded her head while Miranda continued. She had stopped trying to convince her grandmother and was now, trying to convince herself more than anything. "Yea, Gordo is a great guy and I guess he's kinda cute but that doesn't mean I like him. I've known Gordo since I was like four. I've seen him with a bloody nose, hell, we've seen each other throw up when we had the flu together." As she rambled, Miranda had started to pace around the kitchen.

Dropping onto one of the table chairs, she put her elbows on the table and put her head in her hands. "I can't be falling for Gordo," she mumbled softly.

"Why not?" Abuela Santiago said softly. "Why can't you fall for him? From everything you've told me, he's a very nice boy. When you get home you should tell him how you feel. Only a fool waits for the man to come to her, its how I got your abuelo. I saw him and I went after him."

Miranda grinned a little, "Its not that easy. He's…He likes someone else. This other girl, she's our other best friend and she's like a sister to me. I couldn't stab her in the back like that. Even if I did, I'd prolly get run over and lose anyway."

Abuela Santiago gave her granddaughter a sympathetic look as she saw the look in Miranda's eyes. She had no words of wisdom or sage advice for her and could only feel for her. Reaching out, she gently squeezed her granddaughter's hand. "Your time will come niña."

-----

After Miranda cleaned up Samantha and let her go out back to play, Gordo and Miranda sat down at the kitchen table to have breakfast himself. Glancing across the table at his wife, "I've always wondered something." Gordo watched Miranda look up at him. "When I met your grandmother at our wedding, she told me it's a good thing I finally opened my eyes and realized which girl I belonged with. Do you know what she meant?" he asked with a sarcastic grin.

Miranda smirked and looked down at her plate as she speared a piece of pancake with her fork. "Nope."

Gordo chuckled softly, knowing she probably did but wasn't going to tell him. "Well whatever it means. I'm glad I did. You defiantly make life interesting."

Looking up at him with raised eyebrows, "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" she asked him while pointing at him with her fork. His grin widened but didn't say anything as he continued eating. Miranda rolled her eyes and went back to her breakfast as well.


	7. Coming Back

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

Chapter 7 – Coming Back

After breakfast, Gordo had gone outside to play with Sammy and Miranda had gone back to the attic with the intention of continue cleaning and organizing it. But after about ten minutes, "_It's been a mess for the past four months, it can stay a mess for another week."_ Packing up what little she had taken out already, she quickly went back downstairs and outside.

She grinned as she walked into the backyard and watched Samantha yelling for Gordo to push her faster on her swing set. If she knew her daughter like she thought she did, when she got high enough, Samantha was going to jump.

Like she thought, Samantha jumped off the swing and briefly landed on her feet before losing her balance and landing on her butt. Landing, instead of crying, she started laughing.

Snickering softly, Miranda glanced at Gordo. He was smirking a little and giving her a look. Gordo often said that their daughter was a lot like her mother, a fearless daredevil. At the age of five, Samantha had already had stitches twice and so many bruises and cuts, that they had lost track years ago.

Walking over to him, she smirked back at him, "Shut up," she told him, reading his mind. Glancing at their daughter, hearing her laughter stop, Miranda snickered softly. "She has her father in her too."

Samantha was sitting where she fell, suddenly fascinated by a bird as it landed, hoped up into a tree, and back down. Like her father, she wanted to know everything and was constantly asking questions and tinkering with things.

As she watched her daughter, she started thinking about the rest of her first trip to Mexico and how she came back to find Lizzie and Gordo together. Even though she knew it was stupid, she couldn't help but think if things had played out just a little different, maybe not only would they not have Samantha but maybe Gordo and her wouldn't be together at all.

Feeling an arm wrap around her, she looked over at him and felt his lips gently kiss her forehead. "Why do you always think about what ifs?" he asked her rhetorically, not really expecting an answer.

"_Sometimes having someone know you so well could be a real pain in the ass."_ While everyone had been absolutely thrilled to see Lizzie and Gordo together, it was a double edge sword for Miranda. She was glad her friends were together and even though she had seen it coming, she couldn't help but feel jealous. It had been very hard for her to swallow her feelings and try to be genuinely happy for her best friend, that she considered like a sister, and her other best friend, who she was just figuring out that she had fallen for.

Many nights found Miranda lying in bed, just thinking and staring out into space. Fighting the urge to cry in frustration and sadness, and sometimes failing.

Those first few months had been the hardest; but after awhile, she found it easier to hid her real feelings and put on the act, like all was all right.

She often looked back and wondered how she made it through those years that Lizzie and Gordo were together. After awhile, Gordo could tell when she would think back on it because like now, she'd get quiet and an almost sad expression would cross her face. He hated when she would do it; he felt the past was the past and his present and future were with her.

-----

Miranda sat alone in her room, just staring out the window. She had spent the last few hours listening to what seemed like everyone gushing over the fact that Gordo and Lizzie were a couple.

It was fourth of July and had been about a week since the Sanchezs had returned from Mexico and a few days since Gordo and the McGuires returned from Rome. Every fourth of July the town of Hill Ridge shoots off fireworks at the town park and can be seen from almost all over the town. Since Lizzie and Gordo were babies, the McGuires would have a cookout and they would invite the Gordons and Sanchezs over and watch the fireworks from their backyard.

Normally, Miranda looked forward to it but this year, she had been dreading it; especially when she found out that Gordo and Lizzie were together. Ever since they returned from Rome, it seemed like everyone was gushing over the new couple. Miranda tried to be happy for her best friends but deep down, there was a nagging feeling, jealousy.

While Lizzie told her she was uncomfortable with attention, Miranda knew she was enjoying it. Gordo was the one who wasn't, she could tell the attention was making him uncomfortable but wasn't saying anything because of Lizzie.

Those first few days they were back together had been the hardest. As much as she missed her friends and wanted to be back with them, being back with them was difficult because she had to make herself be happy for them while on the inside cursing the situation.

Finally, tonight at the cookout, she couldn't take anymore of the happy couple. Even her parents were gushing over Lizzie and Gordo and it just made her sick to stomach.

The worst part was the more agitated she got, the more the last person she ever wanted to notice, did.

Gordo pulled her aside and around the side of the house, "Are you alright?"

"Wh…Whatya mean?" Miranda said slightly stumbling over her words.

"You've barely eaten anything and you seem, I don't know, jumpy."

Rolling her eyes, she put her hands on her hips and gave him an irritated glance. "What? I have to eat like a horse everyday?" she snapped at him.

Gordo held his hands up defensively, "Easy!" he snapped back. "I was just asking you if you're alright. You don't have to jump down my throat about it. Gees, I'm sorry I actually felt some concern for you. Silly me."

Miranda sighed and bit her tongue. "I'm sorry. I just haven't been feeling well and I'm a little irritable." When Gordo arched an eyebrow, Miranda smirked and glared at him, "Shut up."

"I think I'm gonna go home and lay down," she told him. When he gave her this concerned look, she felt her stomach tighten. "Besides it'll give you some time alone with Lizzie."

"But,"

"Gordo, I'll be fine. Now go," she ordered him and he reluctantly nodded in agreement.

As she was telling her mom what she was going to do, she saw Lizzie give Gordo a quick kiss and then after him say something to her, Lizzie looked at her with concerned look.

As Miranda was leaving, Lizzie stopped her, "You sure you're gonna be ok?"

Miranda smirked softly, "Yea. It's just an upset stomach and I'm a little tired."

"Ok. Well, I hope you feel better," Lizzie said then hugged her friend. "I'll call you later."

"Right. Bye."

"Bye," Lizzie said with a small wave.

That was a few hours ago and here she was, alone in her room watching the fireworks from her window as she figured Gordo and Lizzie were sitting close together enjoying themselves. Sighing softly, she felt something wet slide down her cheek.

"Damn it," she swore under her breath and quickly wiped it away.

Just as she did, Mrs. Sanchez walked into her room. "Hey honey, I just came," she paused in mid-sentence as she watched Miranda whipping her cheek. Tilting her head slightly, she studied her daughter. Walking over to the small window seat where Miranda was sitting, she sat down next to her, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Its about Lizzie and Gordo, isn't it?"

"No," Miranda said quickly while looking out the window.

Mrs. Sanchez's eyes went wide with sudden realization; "Oh my," Quickly wrapping her daughter in a hug, "I can't believe I didn't see this." Remembering how she had been just gushing over the new couple, she winced softly, "I'm so sorry. I never thought how hard this must be for you. Seeing your best friends together and feeling a little left out."

"Its not hard," Miranda said as she pulled herself out of her mother's embrace. "Gordo can date who ever he wants."

Mrs. Sanchez sat there for a moment looking at her. With one sentence, things were slowly starting to make sense. "Is there something between you and Gordo?" she asked cautiously, not wanting to upset her but now very curious.

"What! No! Of course not, he's just my friend," she practically shouted as she jumped up to her feet. "I just don't feel good. I do not, have a crush on Gordo."

Nodding slowly, "Ok honey." Standing up herself, Mrs. Sanchez slowly walked over to her. "Of course honey, I believe you." She then kissed her forehead and walked out of the room.

Sighing in defeat, Miranda flopped down on her bed and closed her eyes.

-----

Miranda felt something shake her slightly and it snapped her out of her daze. Looking over, she found her husband grinning at her.

"Why do you do that?"

"Do what?" she asked him.

"Think about the past."

Miranda smirked at him, "I believe you told me, if we don't learn from the past, we're doomed to repeat it."

Gordo smirked back; pulling her closer, so she was standing in front of him, against his chest. "And you taught me, that sometimes you have to let go of the past to move forward. In the end, I'm with you. Not Lizzie or anyone else but with your crazy ass."

"I know. But I just can't help but think what if. But I also think how lucky I am, that I did end up with you," she then paused and a wide grin appeared on her face, "Even if half the time I want to beat the hell out of you."

"Are you two gonna kiss again?" a voice said from behind Miranda.

They both looked over to find Samantha looking back at them with disgusted look on her face. Gordo laughed softly and Miranda playfully jabbed him in the chest. "Oh, you're gonna pay for that one," Gordo said sarcastically. He went to grab her to tickle her but Miranda quickly grabbed his arms and struggled to keep them away.

"Get him Sammy," Miranda said while laughing.

Letting out an excited laugh, Sam slipped in between them and started to try and tickle Gordo's ribs.

For the next few hours, the three of them played around in their backyard. Something they hadn't done in a long time and Miranda and Gordo enjoyed it.


	8. The Breakup No One Saw Coming

RTds9 – Thank you. Not only am I the King of non-L/Gs, I'm also the King of Sequels. Lol.

the gifted one – I can see how Miranda could be jealous of Gordo and Lizzie getting closer and maybe even deep down, subconsciously, wondering, why not me? That's why I like writing LM stories, with how they left the show, you can go in so many directions. I just wish more authors wrote non-L/Gs. I like L/Gs but its like that's all that gets written, M/Gs are rare and any other couple is like non-existent. I'd love to see someone else do a K/G chapter story. Can't wait for your next update.

nymphadora-era – You're welcome and I like your story too.

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

Chapter 8 – The Breakup No One Saw Coming

Miranda stood behind Samantha and watched as her daughter tried to stir the mixture in the bowl. Miranda was teaching Samantha how to bake, in this case, brownies. She grinned a little as she watched Sam struggle stirring but knew her daughter wouldn't accept any help.

Gordo often said she had her mother's stubbornness, to which Miranda would easily counter that she was daddy's little girl. As many of Miranda's mannerisms as Samantha had, as she got older, the more and more she reminded her of Gordo. Just the way should would talk or act in certain situations, she was defiantly her father's little girl.

Leaning against the back of the chair that Samantha was kneeling on, she snickered as Samantha blew her bangs out of her face in aggravation. Every time she tried to stir, the bowl would rock.

"Want some help?" Miranda asked, trying her hardest not to laugh at the irked expression on her daughter's face.

"Hold the bowl," Samantha ordered. As Miranda did as she was told, Sam grabbed the spoon with both hands and started stirring as hard as she could. After finally getting the ingredients mixed, Miranda helped Samantha pour the mixture into the baking pan.

"Mommy," Sam said softly as Miranda checked the oven and put the pan inside it. "Why are boys jerks?"

Closing the oven, Miranda looked at her with an arched eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Mark Turkolu was saying how girls can't play basketball."

"What did you do?" she asked a little warily.

Samantha smirked, "I chucked the ball into his face and gave him a bloody nose."

Miranda quickly fought back a smirk, "_Don't smile, this is a bad thing. She shouldn't be throwing basketballs at people and hurting them."_ Taking a deep breath, "Honey."

"What?" Samantha asked innocently. "Daddy's said you punched a boy when he made fun of you. Gave him a black eye."

The smirk finally won out and appeared on Miranda's face, "Did Daddy also tell you, he had that black eye for almost a month," she said sarcastically and Samantha giggled.

"But Mark is always teasing me and I'm sick of it," Samantha whined.

Miranda laughed softly, "Maybe he likes you."

"Eww!" Samantha shouted and her face scrunched up in disgust; Miranda laughed harder.

"That's why I tease your father."

Samantha looked at her for a moment, "Mom, when did you know you really liked Daddy?"

Sitting down in the chair next to her, Miranda thought about it for a moment, "Well, there's always been something between me and your dad, we've been close since the day we met," Miranda smirked to herself as she thought about it more. "I guess I'd been fighting it for years but the summer between tenth and eleventh grades was when I finally started to realize I was fighting a losing battle."

-----

It had been a long couple of days for Miranda. The one couple everyone though was destined to be together forever was over.

After almost two years, Lizzie and Gordo had broken up. They told everyone they had drifted apart and to save their friendship, they had to do this. It was partially right; Miranda had noticed Lizzie and Gordo pulling apart and spending less time alone together. She wasn't exactly sure what happened, both were being tight lipped about it, but Miranda knew something had happened.

As Miranda slowly walked down the street, she started thinking about her own feelings about the breakup.

On one hand, she hated seeing her friends upset. While it had been hard feeling like a third wheel a lot of the time, fighting and hiding her own feelings, she had been kind of happy her friends had been happy together. After years of watching them kind of circle around it, they had finally gotten together and they were happy. That made at least a part of her happy.

They seemed like the perfect couple. They were touchy feely but not overly and usually in private. Constantly doing small romantic gestures for each other. If she hadn't been so close to it, maybe it wouldn't have made Miranda so sick to her stomach. But her own feelings aside, it was sweet and they really did love each other.

But it was still like torture for her. Watching them be a couple and doing things couples do, and trying to be happy for them, felt like someone was knocking the wind out of her. It was hard and lately, she felt like she was getting lost in the little act she had been putting on.

Then out of nowhere, Lizzie called her up at eleven at night, completely upset and in tears, telling her that Gordo and her had broken up. She had seen some warning signs but nothing that lead her to think they could break up. But then again, they were still only sixteen and normal teenage couples rarely lasted two months much less two years.

Miranda had spent the last few days talking with and comforting Lizzie. It was like walking a tight rope, she had to make Lizzie feel better and that someone else would come along and after a little while, that Gordo would come back to being her best friend again. After a few days of being with Lizzie, she started to wonder how Gordo was taking the breakup.

She hadn't really talked to her other best friend in awhile and only really saw him in passing at school. So she decided to check up on him. Calling his house to see if he was home, his mother told her he had come home from school and then after dropping his stuff off, went back out again. She had a pretty good idea where he went. When Gordo had a lot on his mind, he usually went out to a secluded part of the park and just sat there, thinking about whatever was bothering him.

Walking through the park, she found Gordo sitting on a large boulder, just staring off into space. "Hey goofball," she teased half-heartedly.

Gordo blinked a few times and slowly looked down at her. "Hey," he said softly.

Climbing up and sitting down next to him, "Whatya thinking about?"

He shrugged, "Lots of things," Gordo said softly. "School, life…Lizzie."

Miranda titled her head slightly and looked at him. "You ok with it?"

"I guess," Gordo told her. "I mean I kinda saw it coming, we were spending a lot of time apart, and it was like…we just weren't clicking anymore. It was mutual. We both wanted to go back to what we had before dating complicated everything."

Miranda watched Gordo pause and look away for a moment. "What?" she asked him.

After a few minutes, "I think I'm going to take accelerated classes and graduate next year," he said.

"Why?" Miranda asked surprised and caught completely off guard. "Is this because of Lizzie?"

Gordo shook his head no. "I just feel like this is the right thing for me to do. I'm not running away but I need a new challenge. Something that'll give me a new direction, outside of Lizzie. I feel, well lost. Its always been Lizzie and Gordo. Never just Gordo. I wanna see what that's like."

"Ok, I guess," she said slowly. Then trying to hide her surprise and sadness, she smirked at him, "Just don't forget us when you're breezing through college for your first doctorate." she said sarcastically.

Gordo grinned a little, "Miranda, you're impossible to forget," he shot back sarcastically. They both smiled at each other and started laughing softly.

As they sat there, Miranda started thinking about what'd be like not having Gordo around. She kept thinking, it'd feel like something was missing and she didn't like that feeling.

The conflicted emotions came flooding back. She was caught in the middle again; this time between her own feelings and dealing with her friends' breakup. Gordo's decision didn't make it any easier.

Sighing softly, she looked over at him. She liked him, really liked him but she was tied to not doing anything by the unwritten best friend code; you cannot date your best friend's ex. Even though these were special circumstances, there was no way Miranda was going to even approach the topic with either of them. Once again, circumstances were against her. She just had to go on keeping the feelings buried inside.

-----

When Miranda was finished, she sent Samantha to clean herself up while she cleaned up the kitchen.

As she was cleaning, Gordo's spoke from the kitchen doorway, "So you missed me more than you let on," he teased.

Without even looking, "Oh please. I enjoyed not having your annoying ass around."

Walking over, he wrapped his arms around her and started to gently kiss her earlobe. "Admit it, you missed me."

"How could I miss you? You were practically home almost every weekend," she continued to tease as she tried her hardest to not laugh out loud.

"You think there may have been a reason for that." Gently touching her chin, Gordo turned her head so he could look at her face. Giving her a lopsided grin, he looked into her eyes, "Miranda."

"Ok. Maybe I missed you a little. Alright?" she said softly as she leaned back into Gordo's chest. "If you had started dating one of those college sluts, I would've snapped their pretty little necks. Then I would've kicked your ass," she said as she turned around to face him.

"That's my girl," he teased and laughed when Miranda glared at him. "Sometimes I think you're more possessive than Lizzie ever was."

"Damn straight," Miranda said with a fake scowl, "After you two broke up, no one else was going to get in between us, not even Lizzie again. Your mine," she told him before giving him a deep, lingering kiss.

Pulling away, Miranda grinned at him and went back to cleaning the kitchen. Gordo chuckled softly as he watched her for a second before helping her.


	9. Halloween

Abuhin – I was thinking about that a few days ago too. While odds are he'd prolly end up with either Lizzie or Miranda, there is still a chance he'd end up with someone he'd meet in college or as an adult.

This is the end, well for now at least. Right now, I'm focusing on finishing the final story of the Fairytale Collection. Once I finish that, I may come back and write a few more chapters for this. I got a few ideas but if anyone else as any, let me know.

Is anyone else having problems doing anything with their profile. Everytime I try to change something, it thinks I want to change my pen name.

A/N – _"Thoughts"_

Chapter 9 – Halloween

As Gordo was finishing cooking supper and Samantha was playing in her room, Miranda was putting away laundry. Hanging up shirts in their closet, she moved around some boxes that were cluttering the closet floor. _"Gordo is such a pack rat,"_ she said to herself with a small grin.

Hanging up the rest of the shirts, she started to move the boxes around and put them into some kind of order so she wasn't kicking them every time she entered the closet. As she pushed the boxes around, she found a small plastic container. Grinning a little, she instantly recognized it as the container she used to keep some of her old keepsakes in. _"Ok, so maybe I am too,"_ she thought to herself with a laugh.

Pulling the container out, she popped the top and grinned a little as she started shifting through the box. About half way through the box, she came across an old Halloween costume. Pulling it out, her grin instantly turned into a wide smile.

It was so much more than just a Halloween costume. This is what had been what she was wearing when she really realized Gordo saw her as more than just a best friend.

"Halloween, senior year," she said softly.

Early on, it had been harder on the couple when they were actually together than before. Gordo was in Los Angeles most of the time for his freshman year at USC and she was still in Hill Ridge for her senior year of high school.

Standing up, she looked at the costume in her hands and then at her reflection in a nearby mirror. _"I wonder if it'd still fit?"_ she thought to herself, half joking and half serious. As she thought about it, she remembered the way Gordo looked at her that night and how he'd possibly look at her now with it on. _"It was the first time I ever saw him with that look in his eyes and looking at me,"_ she thought with huge smile.

In retrospect, she should've been annoyed and a little offended but she felt the opposite. She felt excited and happy that Gordo was actually looking at her, her, like that.

"Rand! Sammy! Dinner's ready," Gordo called from downstairs.

Shutting the container and shoving it back inside the closet, before she left the room, she paused at her dresser and put the costume into one of the drawers. With a snicker and a small shake of the head, she made her way downstairs to the kitchen.

-----

It was the high school's Halloween dance and Miranda was standing near one of the walls of the large gymnasium. _"Once again, I'm the wall flower. Why the hell did I let Lizzie and Kate talk me into doing this stupid Disney princess thing,"_ she thought with a scowl as she watched the other students dancing.

Sighing, she looked down at her costume, _"I look like an idiot."_

For Halloween, Lizzie and Kate had decided that they would all dress up like one of the Disney princess. Lizzie was Cinderella and Kate was Sleeping Beauty. Since Claire had already picked Snow White, the only other brunette was Jasmine.

So she found a pair of light blue baggy pants with a same colored belly shirt with sheer sleeves, and a matching pair of ballet flats. Her raven hair was down back and pulled into a loose ponytail.

As Miranda grabbed a brownie from the food table, she spotted Lizzie flirting with someone. While Lizzie and Miranda were still best friends, they had drifted a little. They were busy doing their own things and often when one was free, the other wasn't. Lizzie hung out with Kate and her crowd more and Miranda hung out more with her friends from the choir. But often when they did get a chance to hang out together, it reminded her of how much she missed her best friend. She also noticed how weird it felt it just being the two of them. It was also because she just missed Gordo.

Gordo had graduated a year early like he planned and had started at USC in August. Over the course of last year, the breakup and hurt feelings between Lizzie and Gordo had slowly slipped away. It'd still take awhile but Lizzie and Gordo would be close friends again.

Letting out an annoyed grumble, she pulled at her shirt trying to hide more of her exposed midsection. _"Why did I agree to this?"_ she asked herself for what must've been the hundredth time that night. "They look great in their costumes but I look ridiculous. Jasmine," Miranda let out a bitter snort, "yea right."

Suddenly a very familiar voice spoke up from behind her. "I don't know, Jasmine as always been one of my favorites and from where I'm standing, you make one hell of a Jasmine."

_"Gordo!"_ Miranda spun around with a grin and saw him smiling softly at her. When she saw what he was wearing, her grin instantly widened.

As if reading her mind, "You say one word and I'm waking out of here," he teased. He had come dressed as Aladdin; all he needed was the hat, a little monkey, and a parrot.

Laughing softly, "I'm not gonna say anything." As he walked up to her, they hugged tightly, "I missed you," she whispered to him.

"I missed you too," he said softly, then his face turned red, "Both of you. I mean I've missed both of you."

Rolling her eyes, "What are you doing here? Much less dress like that. I thought you were staying in the city this weekend."

"I was but then I got a call from a certain blonde best friend who was worried about you."

Miranda felt her heart sink a little and it scared her, "So Lizzie asked you to come?"

Gordo shook his head no. "She told me she was worried about you not having a date and the whole Disney thing, but she never asked me to come. That was my idea, I know a guy in the props department of USC's theatre program and I decided to come home for the weekend."

During the dance, they hung out a little with Lizzie, who promised the three of them would do something tomorrow, but for the most part, it was just the two of them. Not that Miranda was complaining.

Gordo had taken her home and as they were standing on her front porch, Miranda knew Gordo was saying something but she wasn't exactly hearing him. Then suddenly, before she realized it, Miranda leaned in and kissed him. If it had just been a quick kiss, Miranda could've explained it as just a thank you, spur of the moment type thing, but it wasn't.

When Miranda felt Gordo kiss her back, she got scared and broke the kiss. Mumbling and stumbling over words, she quickly turned to run through the front door but Gordo stopped her by gently grabbing her forearm.

"Mir." he said softly. "There…I…We…" Sighing, Gordo ran a hand through his hair as he tried to find the words he wanted to say. "Do you remember Junior Ball? When we slowed dance." Miranda nodded; they had gone together, but just as friends or so they said. "Well, I liked it more than I let on," he said softly. "I came back not just because I wanted to do something nice for you but because I…uh,"

Miranda had been looking at the ground as she listened to him but when he paused, she slowly looked up at him, "What Gordo?"

Fidgeting a little, he started to lightly bounce on his feet. "I came back because I wanted to be your date. This past year or so, there's been something between us; maybe its always been there and I've been too wrapped up in Lizzie to really notice it but I like it and I miss it. I miss us bickering and making fun of stupid stuff, most of all, I just miss you. You make my life, uh, interesting to say the least."

Taking a deep breath, "I feel the same way," she told him.

Gordo looked at her surprised. He was always surprised when a girl showed any kind of interest in him, even Lizzie. "You do?"

Miranda nodded, "You remember my thirteenth birthday?" When a sly smile tugged at Gordo's lips, she smiled too knowing he remembered. "Maybe when I…uh…you…"

Gordo laughed softly and when Miranda gave him a questioning glance, he grinned softly. "You're cute when you're embarrassed." It just slipped out and when he heard himself say it, he blushed.

Miranda grinned. "So you think I'm cute?" she teased.

"When you're not shooting off your mouth," he shot back.

Without realizing it, they had moved so they were standing only an inch or two apart. They both felt their pulses start racing and their breathing get heavier.

Miranda watched in amusement as Gordo practically started shaking, "Umm, I was thinking, USC is opening a Latin America art exhibit next weekend and I was wondering if you, maybe, if you wanted to go…," he never really finished but just kind of trailing off.

Miranda bit back a laugh, but her grin kept growing, "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were asking me out?"

"I am."

Tilting her head a little, she studied him for a moment. After a few seconds, she couldn't keep him in suspense any longer. "I'd like to see the exhibit with you."

A huge smile lit up Gordo's face. "Cool. You can crash in my room…uh, I mean you can sleep in my bed…I'd, uh, sleep on the floor of course…oh man."

Miranda laughed softly, "Gordo…shut up," she ordered him and then leaned in and kissed him again.

-----

As Miranda was helping Gordo clean up after dinner, Gordo grinned as he saw Miranda's smile. He had first noticed it when she came downstairs and it grew wider during diner. "What's put you in such a good mood?" he asked her as he washed the dishes.

Miranda shrugged, "Just the trip down memory lane about us." Then a small, evil smile tugged at her lips, "Plus I found something in our closet."

"Oh. What did you find?" Gordo asked curiously.

A small snicker escaped Miranda's lips. "You remember the Jasmine costume?" Gordo almost let a dish slip through his hands and Miranda giggled softly at the expression on Gordo's face. "I'll take that as a yes," she teased.

Smirking at her, "Yea, I remember it. It marked what I like to call the beginning of the end." he shot back sarcastically. Miranda pretended to take a swing at him which Gordo easily blocked it and pulled her to him.

"Maybe tonight, we'll see if it still fits," she said with a small giggle. Gordo grinned at her and kissed the side of her head. Letting go of her, he went to finish the dishes.

"I thought I'd be bored that weekend; you and something intellectual," she pretended to shudder, "that's a deadly mix."

Gordo looked over his shoulder at her, "Oh really?" Miranda started laughing again and he couldn't keep the grin of his face. "So why weren't you bored?" he asked as he finished the dishes and turned around to face her.

Slipping her arms around his waist, she smiled at him, "Cause I had been waiting almost five years for that moment."

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he grinned back at her. "So you'd been waiting five years for me?" he asked sarcastically.

Miranda rolled her eyes, "Oh please. I wasn't sitting around waiting. Besides, I like to consider that I was waiting for you to come to your senses," she teased. "Just didn't realize it take you five years," she added under her breath, just loud enough for Gordo to hear.

"Hey it was a hard decision. The sexy blonde or the sultry brunette," Gordo defended himself. "Besides, I think in the end I made the right decision," he said before kissing Miranda. "Where's Sammy?" he asked with a mischievous grin.

Miranda snickered, "Across the street at the McCormick's with Anna. Why?"

"Wanna see if it still fits?"

Laughing softly, "Is that the only thing you ever think about?"

"Not the only thing," Gordo said sarcastically. "Just most of the time."

Miranda started laughing harder, "You're so predictable." Letting go of each other, Miranda took his hand, "Maybe later. Right now, I've got a better idea." She led Gordo into living room. Pushing him down onto the couch so Gordo sat on one end of the couch and picking up his arm, she curled up into his side and put his arm around her. Yawning a little, "When was the last time the house was this quiet?"

"Cause of Sammy or you?" he teased and Miranda elbowed him. Snickering, Gordo pulled her tighter and whispering into her hair, "I know what you mean. Mir." He waited until she was looking at him to continue, "All this looking back as really made me realize, that I really did make the right choice."

Miranda grinned at him, "You just want to get to playing dress up faster," she said before kissing him.

"I love you Rand," Gordo said as they broke the kiss.

"I love you too David," Miranda answered as she rested her head on his shoulder.

The two of them sat there for awhile, not just enjoying the peacefulness of the quiet house but just getting a chance to spend some time alone together like this. While they wouldn't trade having Samantha for anything, just the two of them being alone like this had been rare lately and sorely missed.

Spending the weekend reminiscing about the past had been fun and had also made them both realize that in the end, while it may have taken awhile, they both made the right choice and it had defiantly been worth it.


	10. First Date

When I originally ended Looking Back, I had ideas for making a sequel or at least continuing this but I wanted to finish A New Fairytale before coming back. With the latest Fairytale story finished, I wasn't sure if I wanted to come back but then this chapter started taking shape in my head and was bugging me to write it. So I've decided to keep this story going but I'm not going to update it regularly. When a new idea hits for it, I'll write it and add it on. This way, I don't get bored with it and just stop.

A/N – _"Thoughts" ,_ This chapter takes place a month after Chapter 9.

Chapter 10 – First Date

After pulling her bag and purse out of the back of her car, Miranda slowly trudged up the driveway, exhausted from work. Miranda worked as an executive in an advertising agency, promoting companies and creating advertising programs for their clients. She loved her job but there were some days that just wiped her out.

As she walked, Samantha was running circles around her, chattering about her morning in day care and afternoon in nursery school. While she loved her daughter and being a mother, it was days like these she wished her daughter didn't take after her so much because all she wanted was some peace and quiet. Reaching the door, Miranda dropped her car starter into her purse and started digging for her house keys. _"Damn it, where are they?"_ she snarled to herself.

"Mommy," Samantha said as she stood by Miranda's side. "I'm hungry, what's for dinner?" she asked bouncing lightly on the balls of her feet.

Sighing softly and finally finding her keys, Miranda unlocked the door as she answered, "I don't know honey."

"Can we have hot dogs?" Samantha asked as she sprinted into the house.

Biting her lip so she didn't snap at her daughter, "We'll see. Why don't you go upstairs and play," she urged her. Miranda stood in the doorway, watching Samantha run upstairs to her room. _"What I wouldn't give to be that young again,"_ she thought to herself as she shut the door behind her and then drudged up the stairs to the master bedroom.

Pausing at Samantha's room to see that she wasn't up to anything destructive or dangerous, she entered her own bedroom and dumped her bag and purse onto an empty chair near the door. As she walked across the room, she kicked off her heels and then took off her pants, blouse, and stockings. Grabbing a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt, put them on and dropped onto the large king size bed. Grabbing one of the throw pillows, she put the it between her arm and head, and closed her eyes.

Only intending to just lay down and relax, Miranda had instead fallen asleep. She didn't know how long she had been asleep or when Gordo got home but she suddenly felt something tickling the bottom of her feet. Trying to stay asleep, she tried to kick at it but hit nothing but air. She then felt a hand slide across her stomach and someone laughing softly in her ear, "Wake up Princess."

Groaning softly, "Don't want to," she whined with a small smile tugging at her lips. As Gordo started to kiss her neck, Miranda tried not to giggle or laugh, and tried to pull away from him. But Gordo tightened his arm around her and kept her close to him. Finally giving up, she opened her eyes, "Fine! I'm awake, happy?"

Grinning down at her, "Ecstatic." Lightly kissing her lips, "Hungry?"

Nodding, she then noticed how quiet it was. "Where's Sammy?" she asked warily.

Snickering softly, "With my mom. My dad is at some conference, so my mom is gonna take care of her for the night. The two are gonna go out to dinner and then go back to her house."

Miranda rolled onto her back and smiled up at him, "So we got the whole house to ourselves for the night?" she asked sarcastically, to which Gordo nodded and grinned back. "You said something about dinner?"

Gordo chuckled softly as he nodded again. "When was the last time we got to spend the night just the two of us?" Miranda smiled seductively as she reached up and ran a hand through his mass of dark curls. "I gotta get back downstairs, the food's almost done."

"So its kinda like a date?" she asked as Gordo moved off the bed.

"Guess it is," he answered before he walked out of the room.

Miranda folded her arms up behind her head and looking up at the ceiling, thought for a moment, _"I don't even remember the last time we even went out on a date."_

-----

It was the Thursday after Halloween and Lizzie was sitting on Miranda's bed as she watched Miranda digging through her dresser. She grinned to herself as she watched her best friend frantically digging through the various drawers, searching for outfits to wear this weekend. Almost immediately after Gordo had left, Miranda had called Lizzie's cell phone and told her everything. While it had been weird to find out that not only where her two best friends dating but also her best friend was dating her ex, she was slowly getting used to it.

As she sat on the bed watching, Lizzie had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud. She had never seen Miranda this out of sorts before and the fact that Gordo was the cause, just added to it. "Miranda, you've been through your entire wardrobe twice and you still haven't packed anything."

"I know that," Miranda muttered. Gordo was coming tomorrow afternoon, right after school, to pick her up and she hadn't packed anything. While they knew there was no way that either set of parents would agree to letting two seventeen year olds spend a weekend together unsupervised, much less spend the night in the same room. So they told both parents that Miranda was going to Los Angeles to visit Gordo and see the campus and was going to spend the nights in the dorm room of a female friend of his. Gordo had even gotten the friend to go along with the plan, even though he had to endure her teasing about it. Miranda's parents reluctantly agreed; it wasn't until years later, that their parents learned the truth.

In one hand, Miranda held a conservative, white blouse and in the other, was low v-cut, black shirt. _"Which one?"_ Hearing Lizzie snicker behind her, Miranda turned around, "What?"

"I can't believe Gordo has you this rattled," she teased.

Miranda glared at her, "If I remember correctly, you called me like two o'clock in the morning the day of your date asking me what you should wear," she shot back but was also thinking, _"Why am I this rattled?"_

"Fine," Lizzie said with a playful smirk. "Take both," she said. When Miranda gave her a confused look, "Take both tops. Pair the black top with a pair of jeans and those beat up converse that you seem to love, then the white blouse with black pants and a pair of black heels. That gives you the two outfits, throw in a t-shirt and another pair of pants and you're set."

Miranda nodded as she folded and packed the clothes and pulled out the pairs of sneakers and heels. "So what about pajamas?" she asked a little nervously.

Giving her a sarcastic smile, she dramatically looked at her watch, "Well, the mall is still open. We could go to Victoria's Secret and pick something up."

"Lizzie!" Miranda yelled, trying to keep her voice steady and praying her entire face wasn't beat red. Lizzie just started laughing at Miranda's reaction.

"Nothing like that is going to happen," Miranda told her, trying to keep herself at least appear calm. As much as she hated to admit it though, Lizzie was right, Gordo had her rattled. It wasn't so much him but being something more with him. Ever since he had asked her out, she had scrutinized every imperfection she thought she had and then of course there was the ghost of Lizzie, or at least the one she had made up in her head.

Calming down a little bit, "Mir, just throw in whatever you normally wear to bed and you'll be fine," Lizzie told her, and she watched Miranda grab a pair of shorts and a tank top and throw them into the bag. As Miranda threw in some final things, Lizzie could easily tell she was still nervous. "Will you relax, I've never seen you this uptight about anything, much less a boy. This is Gordo, you two have been torturing and teasing each other for as long as you've known each other." Lizzie stood up and gripped her shoulders, "You're gonna have a blast."

Miranda smirked at her and slowly nodded. "Its just so weird, thinking of Gordo as something other than my best friend."

Lizzie snickered and grinned, "It can be a good thing ya know. The benefits are really nice." Miranda started laughing as Lizzie continued, a little more seriously, "Gordo is really a sweet guy and you two will make a cool, if odd, couple."

Miranda continued laughing and playfully shoved Lizzie away from her, "Thanks Liz."

The weekend had started out well, when Gordo first saw her, he had given her one of his goofy grins. One of the funnier moments had been when Mr. Sanchez had pulled him aside and asked Gordo to keep an eye on her. It had taken everything he had to keep a straight face. Even the first night had gone smoothly, Miranda had used Gordo's roommate's bed and Gordo used his own. Miranda had teased him about the fact that his roommate was conveniently out for the weekend, Gordo eventually and reluctantly told her that he had paid him off to take off for the weekend.

But Saturday, things just went down hill. As they were touring the exhibit, Miranda had slipped and stumbled no less than five times, and her ankles were killing her now. It was like it was the first time she had ever worn heels. If it hadn't been for Gordo, she'd probably have crashed on her butt or fallen into one of the sculptures. Then during dinner, Miranda had managed to splash her white blouse with spaghetti sauce. To add insult to injury, while not laughing in her face, Gordo had this amused grin dancing across his face the whole afternoon.

As they walked out of the restaurant, Miranda was on edge and Gordo wasn't helping any.

"I feel like I've been on this date before," Gordo said sarcastically as they walked back towards campus and to his dorm room. "What did you do, switch bodies with Lizzie?" he continued, "What happened to the confident, sexy girl I feel for?" Gordo smirked as Miranda came to a dead stopped and wheeled around on him, so she was only inches away from his face.

"Listen to me, you arrogant little ass," Miranda snarled into his face, "I'm sick of your stupid snide comments and if you don't wipe that stupid grin off your face, I'm gonna smack you," Miranda threatened him as gripped his shirt in one hand and gestured wildly with her other.

Gordo just continued to grin at her, "Feel better?"

Stunned for a moment at his question, she looked at him like he was crazy for a moment and then thought about what he just said. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. She had been trying so hard to be perfect and everything was backfiring on her. _"So that's way he's been so an ass today?"_ she asked herself, she had a sinking suspicion that he could tell she wasn't really being herself. _"Could he tell I was trying to hard?"_ Gordo's amused grin eased into a small smile and Miranda slowly started to calm down. "You know its not nice to tease me. I'm a girl, I'm delicate," she told him as she fought the urge to grin back at him.

"Randi," he said softly and she smiled a little at the new nickname, "You're many things…but delicate isn't one of them." Miranda punched him in the shoulder and the two stood in the street, laughing. As they started walking again, "Come on, let's get back and get you out of that shirt," he told her.

Not missing a beat, "How romantic," she said sarcastically, she knew what he meant but couldn't let it pass without saying something. It wouldn't be right to let him pass just like that, especially after what just happened.

In retaliation, he reached out and grabbed her waist, "Come here," Gordo said before leaning in to kiss her.

-----

Their first date hadn't exactly run smoothly, but when she thought about it, most of what they did, never really ran smoothly. Somehow they made it work.

"Mir!" Gordo shouted from downstairs, "You coming or am I going to have to eat by myself?"

"Keep your pants on goofball," Miranda shouted back and getting off the bed, she glanced at her closet and a wicked grin formed across her face.

A few minutes later, Gordo had finished with dinner and was getting a little impatient with his wife. He was hungry and he wanted to start eating but couldn't figure out what was taking her so long. Than glancing at the doorway after hearing movement, he knew.

"Smells good," Miranda said as she walked into the kitchen, pretending not to notice Gordo's eyes following her. "What is it?" Casually looking over at him, she locked eyes with him, and arched an eyebrow, "Something wrong?" she teased.

Gordo smirked at her, "You're a tease, you know that?" Miranda had come downstairs barefoot and looking like she was only wearing one of Gordo's sweatshirts, but actually had a pair of shorts on underneath.

Miranda just gave him an innocent smile, "Or maybe you just have a dirty mind," she told him as she slid into her seat at the kitchen table. Even before they got together, she loved toying with him, and now that they were a couple, it made it just that more fun. She watched his eyes as he sat down, even though they were glaring back at her, she could see an old and familiar emotion flash in them. _"Oh, we're gonna have fun tonight,"_ she thought to herself sarcastically.

That night, after dinner, Miranda stood on the deck in the back of the house, enjoying the night breeze and the calmness. Hearing the sliding glass door slide open and then shut, and footsteps approaching her, Miranda smiled. She then felt his arms wrap around her waist and him kiss her temple gently.

Leaning back against him, Miranda let out a content sigh as she placed her arms and hands over his. After a minute, "I can't remember the last time it was this quiet."

"Usually the Barkats are in their pool all night, making a racket," Gordo grumbled, "Their three girls were out here at like midnight a few days ago."

Miranda chuckled softly, "You ever wonder what it'd be like to have another baby?"

"Sometimes," he said at first and then Gordo arched his neck so he could look at her face, "Why? You're not…are you?"

Laughing harder at the scarred look that crossed his face, she hadn't been the easiest to deal with during Sammy's pregnancy, she shook her head no, "Just thinking out loud."

Falling back into their comfortable silence, Miranda slowly closed her eyes. Letting her hands slide a little bit down off of Gordo's, she grinned and thought to herself part sarcastically, part hopeful, _"Maybe someday, I'll get my little Gordo_."


	11. Breakup

A/N – "_Thoughts"_ , This chapter takes place a week after Chapter 10.

A/N 2 – Chapters 11 and 12 will cover one event and two flashbacks. This chapter will end in the flashback and the next chapter will pick up back in the present (in the storyline).

Chapter 11 – Breakup

Miranda laid sprawled out on her bed, staring at the alarm clock on the nearby nightstand. She had been feeling tired a lot lately, but figured it was due to long hours at the office. Then, beginning of this week, she started throwing up and her body felt stiff and sore. While Gordo was worried that she had the flu, she knew her body, and she began to get a sinking suspicion what was wrong.

When Miranda got sick, she was usually floored and for the most part, out of it. This time, aside from the soreness, occasionally throwing up, and being so tired, she felt alright. There had been only one other time when she had felt like this.

"_Samantha."_

That was why she had taken today off from work, to test her theory. Even now, she was waiting for the results of the home test she bought.

The problem with waiting was that it gave her time to think. So many questions were rolling around in her head and it was making her crazy. "_What would Gordo say? Are we ready for another child? Heck, am I ready for another child? What about Sammy?"_

Miranda loved being a mother, but Samantha was at the age where she was starting to stake some independence from her parents. Miranda missed her little buddy but was also thrilled to see her daughter growing up. Plus, it gave Miranda more free time for herself. Another child would mean even more demands on her time, and she wasn't sure if she was willing to give that up.

"_What am I so worried about? I may not even be pregnant."_ She knew it was probably a lie but she was grasping at straws right now to keep her sanity.

Hearing the front door shut downstairs, Miranda began panicking. She could hear Samantha's tiny footsteps running, probably heading towards the living room and the TV. Then she heard other, heavier footsteps beginning to climb the stairs.

Miranda continued to lay on the bed as she listened to the footsteps getting louder. Every footstep put her more and more on edge. The last person she wanted to deal with at the moment was her husband. Hearing the click of the door opening, Miranda rolled over so her back was towards it and pretended to be asleep.

Gordo slowly opened the door and looked down at the bed. They had gotten into several arguments over the past few days, so he had already prepped himself for a chilly reception. "Hey," he said softly. When Miranda just grunted in return, Gordo bit his tongue, not wanting to antagonize her. Taking a deep breath, he prepared himself for somehow stepping on another emotion landmine. "I wanted to know if you wanted to do anything about supper?" he asked carefully.

"I'm not cooking anything," Miranda snapped.

"Alright," Gordo said quickly, "I was thinking more like takeout or I'll cook."

"Whatever," she mumbled, "I'm not hungry."

"You alright?" The second the words left his mouth, he knew he was in trouble.

Miranda's head snapped up and she glared at him over her shoulder. "I'm fine," she said through gritted teeth. "Except for this nagging pain in my ass," she then started shouting, "that won't shut up!"

"I'm just concerned," Gordo said simply.

Getting up, she walked around the bed and up to him. "The only thing you're concerned about is how hard of a time you're gonna have if I am sick." Miranda watched in satisfaction as Gordo's jaw twitched in irritation.

"No I'm not." Glaring back at her, "Heaven forbid I actually worry about my wife."

"That would mean you'd have to care about someone other than yourself." Miranda didn't know where all this was coming from, she just felt angry and wanted to pick a fight with him, to vent. She knew Gordo was one of the last people she'd accuse of being selfish, but at the moment, she didn't care.

"What?" Gordo snapped back at her, letting his frustration take over. "I believe you were the one who bought a pair of two hundred dollar shoes without tell me."

Miranda began to poke him in the chest. "What I do with my money is none of your business."

Pushing her hand away from him, Gordo retaliated, "It's our money. We may be better off than some, but that doesn't mean we can splurge at the drop of a hat. We have a budget."

"And if you weren't so damn inflexible," Miranda started to say but was cut off.

"Well, someone has to counteract your impulsiveness."

"Get out!" Miranda roared at Gordo. She had had enough. A sense of repulsion quickly filled her and she wanted nothing more than for him to leave.

"Fine." Turning on his heel, he ripped the door open and slammed it shut after himself.

After he left, Miranda could hear him shout Samantha's name as he made his way down the stairs. A few minutes later, the front door opened and shut. Then just as suddenly as it came, the anger left her, only to be replaced with a weird, numb feeling, as she listened to Gordo's engine rev up and then get fainter as it drove away.

"_What the hell am I doing?" _Miranda was upset with herself at picking a fight with him. She always felt bad when she fought with him, but this was ten times worse. Then suddenly, a timer ring sounded. Miranda slowly turned and looked at the half open bathroom. "_Oh God, I need him now more than ever, and I've practically driven him away."_

-----

Miranda was laying on her bed in her dorm room staring at the far wall. When most college students were celebrating the end of the school year, she was alone in her room, thinking. In almost twenty four hours, her whole world had shifted from getting through finals to the possibility of some of her closest friends being pregnant.

Last night, after her last final, she had planned on going out to blow off steam, but her plan changed when Lizzie called. Lizzie and Miranda were still close friends but had drifted even more over the course of their high school senior year. It didn't help that Miranda spent a lot of her free time with Gordo whenever she could. Going to different universities didn't help, either. While she was at Berkley, Lizzie had gone to San Diego State. It was there that Lizzie had met her new boyfriend, Thomas.

Last night, Lizzie had called Miranda in tears, afraid to talk to her parents, telling her that she had all the symptoms and was almost positive that she was pregnant. Nineteen, barely finished with her first year of college, and possibly pregnant. What made matters worse was when she told Thomas, he responded with he needs some time to think this over. On top of everything else she was feeling, Lizzie was scared that Thomas would run off on her.

Miranda had tried her best to calm Lizzie's fears, but deep down, this scared her too. Lizzie and Thomas had only been together for a few months; she and Gordo had been together for over a year now. She began to think that this could easily have been her, in almost the same position. "_Aside from the boyfriend running off,"_ she rationalized to herself. But the more she dwelled on it, "_Would he run off? Yeah, most of the time he's mature but he has his moments. What if he got scared?"_

When she had still been in high school, their relationship had been easier, since he could come home most weekends and they would go out, USC wasn't too far from Hill Ridge. But with her at Berkley and him at USC, it was about a 6 hour commute one way. So for the most part, they talked via the phone or internet, and one weekend a month, they would rotate visiting each other. With the distance and time apart, when they did see each other, they slept together at least once during their visit.

"_All those times, it was like playing Russian roulette. Yeah, we used protection, but so did Liz."_

As Miranda was getting herself more and more worked up about this, she began to think about what was going to happen in the near future. As in within the hour.

Gordo had finished his school year a few days ahead of her, so after getting his stuff to his parents' home, he had come up with the cover story that he was going back to L.A. to help a friend bring some of his stuff back to his home. His friend just happened to live in Sacramento. So on the way back, he was going to swing by Berkley. Before he left, he made sure that the Miranda's parents knew about his little trip, so they wouldn't ask too many questions upon finding him with Miranda when they came to get her.

"_That boy doesn't just lie, he creates fiction," _Miranda thought.

A knock on her door interrupted her thoughts. "_Gordo."_ Getting off the bed, Miranda slowly made her way to the door, almost dreading the encounter with each step.

As Miranda opened the door, Gordo immediately wrapped his arms around her, stepping forward and kissing her as he used his foot to shut the door behind him. They only had a few hours before Miranda's parents would be here this afternoon, and they had planned on making the most of the little time they had together.

For a brief moment, Miranda's worries left her as she felt the thrill of Gordo's lips pressed against hers. They both knew what it took to get the other going, and that was exactly what Gordo was doing.

Grasping onto her last strand of self-control, "David," she called out hoarsely. When Gordo only responded by running his hands underneath her shirt, Miranda summoned as much self-control as she could, ignoring the incredible urge to run her fingers through his hair. "David," she said again, and gently pushed him, so there was a few inches in between them.

Taking a deep breath, he licked his lips and raked a hand through his hair, as he gave her a look of confusion and curiosity.

"Have you talked to Liz recently?" Miranda asked.

"She left me a message but I haven't called her back yet," Gordo told her. "I couldn't really understand her. She sounded like she had been crying, and was rambling. I tried calling her back, but kept getting her voicemail. If it was important, I figured she would've tried calling me again.

Miranda sighed softly, "She's worried that she's pregnant."

"Oh," Gordo said and then frowned at the agitated look Miranda gave him. "What? Has she gone to the doctor yet? Hell, has she taken one of those home tests?" Gordo asked, a little irritated.

Miranda immediately got defensive. "No," she snapped back. "I convinced her to go today and get one."

"Then there's nothing to worry about, yet. She may not even be pregnant." Gordo ran a hand through his hair trying to calm down. Lizzie was a sore subject with him, they really weren't as close as they had been. They talked occasionally but there wasn't that bond anymore. Gordo had tried hard to move on, and thought his new relationship with Mirada was a good start. "_But everytime I try to move forward, I get dragged back. I'm so tired of being expected to fix everything."_

"Nothing to worry about?" she shot back rhetorically. "Damn it, Gordo, she's our best friend and she's scared out of her mind."

"And what am I supposed to do about it?" Gordo snapped. "You said she doesn't even know yet and why do we even have to do anything? I'm not even her boyfriend anymore and I'm still dealing with her issues. That is fucked up. Let her boyfriend, what his name, help her through this. He was a part of what got her into this mess."

"No, David, you're fucked up."

Ignoring the little voice in his head that told him to shut the fuck up, Gordo pressed on. "How? Cause I'm tired of a ghost looming over us? It seems like we can't take two steps forward without having to deal with something, and most of the time it's her."

"She still my best friend!" Miranda shouted back.

"And how many times have you talked to this best friend before last night? And I mean more than just a five minute IM conversation online. Once, twice? You told me you've barely talked to her, even over winter break. People grow apart." Gordo didn't know why he was getting pissed about this, a part of him was worried about Lizzie. But another part, the one that seemed to be controlling him at the moment, maybe due to the lack of oxygen to his brain, was frustrated and very annoyed. Lizzie, once again, had created drama between Miranda and him. What made it more maddening, was a lot of the time it was unintentional.

"You know what," she said, "you're right. But not about Lizzie, about you!" She took a step forward and began pointing at him. "I'm sick of your crap. You have been friends with Lizzie you're entire life and you suddenly don't give a damn! Well I don't want to be with someone who's like that. Every time I try to talk to you, you just brush it off."

Getting defensive, "Everytime I try to have a serious conversation with you, you tune me out! All you ever want to talk about is superficial shit." Gordo felt a throbbing in his head as the fight continued. "_Like I give a damn about some stupid actor and who he's having an affair with. I want to talk about us! I love you and I can't even say it!"_

"Well excuse me Mr. CNN." .

"That's it. Always make a joke. But you seem to have no problem talking with Christian," he snarled back at her.

Christian was a close, purely platonic friend Miranda had made the first few weeks at Berkley. For as secure as he was, Gordo was a little jealous of Christian and the many what-if scenarios that would run through Gordo's head. Miranda got easily annoyed when Gordo would show off whenever Christian was around. Gordo didn't trust him and whenever Miranda and him fought, the topic of Christian somehow seemed to sneak into their fights.

"_You say you want to talk but whenever something comes up, you run to him,"_ Gordo thought, and bite his tongue as he barely kept himself from saying it.

When Miranda was angry, she often said whatever popped into her head, often times intensifying the argument. But what she was about to unleash was like a nuke, basically playing right into Gordo's biggest insecurity and worst fear.

"Oh, we do more than just talk," Miranda said, lacing her words with venom, and for a moment, wearing a smug smirk on her face. It was a bluff, nothing really was happening between them but she wanted to make Gordo squirm. Instead, watching Gordo's eye twitch and his jaw clamp shut, she knew she had really gone too far this time.

For a moment, there was a deadly silence.

"_Did she just admit to what I think she did?"_ Gordo thought as he tired to realize the meaning behind Miranda's words.

At the same time, Miranda was thinking, "_Oh God, what the hell did I just do?"_ It was amazing how so much damage could be done with so few words.

Gordo always feared that he might get dumped like this, his girlfriend admitting to not just leaving him but cheating on him too; and she had used it purposely. She got a sick feeling as she watched Gordo's eyes change from that of a young man in anger, to those similar to a little boy who had just been suckered punched.

Trying to save face, "Fine," he said through gritted teeth. "I don't need you or anyone else."

"Gordo," Miranda said softly but Gordo ignored her. Turning around, she watched him throw the door open and walk out, slamming it shut behind him. Screaming in outrage, sadness, and a few other emotions mixed in, Miranda kicked the closed door.

Collapsing against it, Miranda pulled her legs to her chest and just starting crying hysterically. "_Damn it! Gordo! Damn it!"_


	12. And Baby Makes Four

A/N – "_Thoughts"_

A/N 2 – Chapter 12 is a continuation of Chapter 11.

Chapter 12 – And Baby Makes Four

Roughly an hour after their argument, Miranda was sound asleep on their bed, cradling and clinging to Gordo's pillow. In the back of her mind, they had a fight, nothing new about that. It was the nature of their relationship, they'd fight about something and after cooling off, they would make up. This time was really no different. It was just that Miranda's mind and emotions were getting a little too carried away, and she seemed to be bouncing from one extreme to the other and back again.

As she slept, she didn't hear the car pull into the driveway and the engine shut off. Nor did she hear the opening of the front door and the sound of Sammy charging up the stairs, then down the hall to her room. What did wake her was the click of the bedroom door opening.

"Mir?" Gordo asked softly, and a little warily.

Stirring at the sound of the door, Miranda's eyes flew open at the sound of his voice. Jumping off the bed, she charged at Gordo. Surprised and unsure of what she was doing, Gordo instinctively took a step back as she slammed into him. Miranda immediately wrapped her arms tightly around his stomach and buried her face against his neck. Wrapping his own arms around her, Gordo could feel her crying as he held her, and could just make out her mumbling something.

"Hey. What's wrong?" As he held her, his mind started racing. "_She's crying. This is not good. What the hell is wrong?"_

Taking a shaky, steadying breath, Miranda slowly lifted her head.

"_Damn."_ Gordo flinched as he saw her face. "Randi."

"Dave, I'm…I'm sorry about earlier. I…" Miranda paused as she swallowed the lump in her throat, and her pride. It was rare when Miranda was the one apologizing, even when she was wrong. Gordo gave her a curious look, never letting go of her, and she took a deep breath before continuing. "I need to tell you something.

"I think I know why I've been feeling a little…off lately." As she paused again, Gordo thought she was trying to kill him with all these pauses. He wanted to know what was wrong and he wanted to know now.

Miranda looked at his face and freeing an arm from around him, gently ran a hand across his cheek. "I'm pregnant," she said softly, then waited for his reaction.

Gordo stood there for a moment, a little stunned, but slowly, what she just said sunk in. Blinking, "Pregnant?" he half asked, half stated.

When she nodded, Gordo laughed as he picked her up and spun her around. Putting her back on her feet, Miranda swayed a little as she held her stomach. Gordo grinned sheepishly at her. "Sorry."

Miranda tried to give him a stern look but his grin was infectious. "So this is a good thing, right?" she asked, her voice cracking a little.

"Good thing?" Gordo asked rhetorically. "It's great!"

Breathing a sigh of a relief, Miranda rested her forehead against his shoulder. Gordo stroked her back as he kissed the top of her head. "_I can handle nine months…I think."_

-----

Gordo muttered under his breath as he walked down the street from his home towards the McGuire's. "_Why the hell am I going? Why do I come running every time I'm summoned?"_ he asked himself sarcastically.

Lizzie had called him and basically begged him to come over. Her boyfriend didn't want to come to Hill Ridge to visit her, and Lizzie didn't want to celebrate the New Year alone. At first, Gordo had a hard time understanding why Lizzie's boyfriend wasn't with her. Since the pregnancy scare, the two had rarely been separated for more than a few hours. The pregnancy scare had been brought on by stress. Lizzie had been so worried and wound up about finals that she threw her system out of whack; it just happened to be perfect timing with the last time Thomas and her slept together.

Something else that had happened from the scare, Lizzie was reaching out to Miranda and Gordo. It had put a lot of stuff into perspective for her. She realized that she didn't like how separated she had become from her oldest friends. While he didn't know this, Gordo had a suspicion that she felt responsible for his breakup with Miranda. He wasn't sure how she figured she was responsible, but she would often say she was sad to hear they had broken up.

If he had really thought about it, he may have also wondered why she didn't call Miranda instead of him. Recently, Lizzie and Miranda were a lot closer than he was with her.

Reaching the McGuire's, Gordo paused on the porch for a moment. It was times like these, especially the holidays, that he missed Miranda the most. He'd admit that he did miss her but his pride wouldn't let him go back to her. "_She cheated on me. I don't deserve that shit. I want someone who wants to be with me."_

Sighing softly, Gordo pushed the feeling aside, and rang the doorbell. He couldn't help but laugh a little when the door opened and he was engulfed in a hug while blonde hair flew widely around him. "Gordo," she said excitedly.

"Hey Liz," he responded as he hugged her back.

"Come on in," Lizzie said as she basically dragged and pushed him inside.

As he walked in, Gordo gave Lizzie a strange look over his shoulder. "What's the rush?" he asked and she just gave him an innocent smile. Looking forward, as he walked into the kitchen, he saw Thomas sitting on the couch. Coming to a dead stop, the two men locked gazes.

Thomas gave Gordo a sympathetic look and said, "It was not my idea."

"Lizzie," Gordo started to say, but he then caught something out of the corner of his eye. "What the hell?" he snapped as he spun around on Lizzie.

Blocking his exit, Lizzie looked up at him. "Just listen to her, please. For me. Afterwards, you can go if you want. I just hate seeing you two not even talking."

Gordo slowly looked over and glared at his ex standing near the back patio doors. Miranda looked down at the floor, not able to look back at Gordo.

"Fine," Gordo muttered under his breath. "I'll listen." Walking across the room, he paused for a moment in front of Miranda, and Miranda slowly looked up at him, shyly. As he finally walked past her and out back, Miranda cast a glance over at Lizzie.

Lizzie tried to give Miranda an encouraging smile and motioned for her to follow Gordo. Miranda took a deep breath, trying to gather her courage before heading outside.

Watching as Miranda shut the door behind her, Lizzie nervously rubbed the back of her neck.

"Was this a smart idea?" Thomas asked from the couch.

Lizzie gave him an annoyed look. "Shut up." Walking over to the couch, she didn't sit down but stood nervously looking at the door, wondering what was happening outside. She had set the stage, she only hoped the players would perform how she wanted.

Outside on the patio, Miranda watched as Gordo simply glared at her. She knew she was the last person Gordo wanted to see at the moment, but at the very least, she had to set things straight.

While Miranda searched for words, Gordo was having a hard time not only focusing on his anger, but keeping his eyes locked on her face. She was wearing a tight pair of blue jeans that hugged her hips, and a tight black shirt that exposed just a little of her belly, as well as his old jean jacket that he had let her borrow last year, and a pair of old Converse.

He knew she was wearing the outfit because of him, she knew exactly what he liked. He tried hard to ignore it, but he did have to smirk, if only for a second, as he noticed what was written across the black t-shirt in silver lettering. "_Brunette's Do It Better. Typical Miranda."_

"Well?" Gordo asked impatiently.

"I've missed you," Miranda said softly. Gordo snorted and Miranda tried not to snap back. "It's the truth. I want to….I need to set something straight."

Folding his arms across his chest, Gordo waited. Brushing some hair out of her face, Miranda looked away for a moment. "I'm sorry," she said softly.

"Is that it?"

Miranda's eyes flashed dangerously. "Damn it, Gordo! I'm trying to apologize here and you're not making it any easier."

"Why should I?"

"Cause I'm not apologizing for cheating on you! I'm apologizing for lying to you!" she shouted at him. "_Why does he have to be so damn frustrating?"_

Gordo tilted his head and gave her a curious look. "What?"

"You're an idiot, David. There's no way in hell I'd cheat on you, you mean too much to be both as my friend and as my boyfriend.. I made it up 'cause I wanted to piss you off." Suddenly her voice softened as she continued, "I just didn't realize I'd completely destroy our relationship. But I guess that's me, talking before I think."

"Why?" Gordo slowly moved forward, saying, "I mean, I kinda guess why you wanted to hurt me. But why are you trying going through…all this?"

"Iloveyou," she mumbled under her breath. Miranda jumped in surprise as she felt Gordo's hand gently cup her chin and lift her head up. Drawing in a shaky breath, "_How did he get so close?"_

"What?" he asked softly. While the scowl was gone, there was no sign of what Gordo was feeling, and it made her nervous.

Still, Miranda couldn't stop from repeating herself. "I…uh….I love you."

A small smile slowly crept on Gordo's face. "I love you too." Then as the countdown to midnight was going on inside the house, Gordo leaned forward and kissed her. While he had intended it to be only a small kiss, the second their lips touched, Miranda wrapped her arms around him, pulling him closer and keeping their lips locked.

Coming up for air, Gordo said breathlessly, "Wow. I missed that."

Miranda giggled and then said, "I missed something else." At Gordo's wondering look, Miranda whispered into his ear and then laughed as Gordo's face went bright red.

As they walked back inside, Lizzie and Thomas looked up at them warily.

Miranda grinned at them, "Thanks, Lizzie, for the help."

Lizzie smiled back, "Good." Lizzie came over and hugged her. "I'm glad you're happy again."

Miranda smiled back at her.

"So what now?" Lizzie asked.

Glancing back at Gordo, Miranda's grin widened as she felt his arms wrap around her tightly from behind. "We got a lot of stuff to work through."

"Like learning how to let go and let the other be in control every once in awhile," Gordo said and laughed as she lightly elbowed him in the ribs.

"So think we can try and put a second friendship back together?" Lizzie asked a little shyly.

Both Miranda and Gordo smiled at her. "Hell, if me and Miranda can get back together without spilling any blood," he paused as he laughed when Miranda elbowed him again. "Anything can happen. Why not?" he asked rhetorically.

"I've missed you guys," Lizzie said and they all agreed.

A short time after, Miranda was getting restless and Gordo wasn't helping as he seemed to rubbing her back or shoulders all the time. "Well, if you don't mind," she told Lizzie, "me and Gordo are going to duck out. We've got some stuff to catch up on."

Scrunching up her face, Lizzie said, "I get the idea. Lunch tomorrow?"

"Of course." She then grinned, "I'll give ya all the details."

"Gee thanks," Lizzie said sarcastically and Miranda laughed.

After saying goodbye, and promising they'd double date sometime over the winter break, Miranda and Gordo headed to his empty house to make up for the past six months.

-----

Gordo was sitting on the bed, his back against the headboard and his legs bent a little. In between his legs, and in his arms, Miranda sat leaning back against his chest.

"Are we ever going to stop fighting?" Miranda asked as she relaxed against Gordo.

Snickering, "I don' think it's possible. It's just who we are. But in the end, we've always found a way to work things out and we do make great things together."

"That reminds me, I gotta call Lizzie after my parents," Miranda said. Lizzie and Thomas hadn't lasted past sophomore year, but eventually Lizzie did find someone to spend the rest of her life with. Lizzie, her husband, and two year old toddler, Jake, had moved back to Hill Ridge last year. It was a quick drive from just outside L.A. to Hill Ridge and vice versa, and the women would have lunch at least once a month.

A light tapping on the slightly open bedroom door drew the couple's attention. "Mommy?" came the timid voice from the hallway.

"_Sammy."_ Miranda winced at the sound of her daughter's voice. "Come here baby," Miranda called.

Samantha warily entered the room, and cautiously looked around. "You not mad at Daddy anymore?"

"No, honey," she told her. "Come here," Miranda said and held her arms out. Samantha quickly scampered up onto the bed and into Miranda's arms, where Miranda tightly hugged her and kissed her forehead.

"You know I love Daddy very much, right?"

"I know," Samantha said, snuggling against her.

"Actually, I'm glad you're here," Miranda said, glancing up at Gordo, who nodded back to her. "We've got something to tell you."

When Samantha looked up at her curiously, "_She looks just like her father,"_ Miranda told her, "We're going to have a little addition to the family. You know Jake?" she asked, Remember when he was in Aunt Lizzie's tummy?"

Sammy nodded, getting excited.

Gordo laughed softly as Sammy looked almost identical to how Miranda would when she was excited and happy about something.

"In nine months you're going to have a little baby brother or sister."

"I hope it's a girl," Sammy said, "Boys are yucky."

Miranda hugged her daughter as Gordo laughed out loud.

As Gordo reached over to grab the TV remote and Samantha settled in her lap, Miranda looked up at Gordo behind her and smiled.

"_I'm hoping for a boy. I want a matching set," _she thought, " _A_ _little Gordo, who rambles on about nothing and everything."_

Settling back, Gordo smiled back at her and leaned forward to kiss her. "_Yup, my own little Gordo" _Miranda thought_, "with that curly mop of black hair but my brown eyes."_


End file.
